The National Muslim Conference (NMC) of Ghana led by the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Dr. Nuhu Sharubutu, has presented the two major political parties, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) its proposals for consideration in the parties’ Presidential manifestoes.

The proposals presented by the NMC have the Muslim community’s view on its needs and what it expects from the government concerning development. The proposed 14-point ‘Muslim Manifesto’ is important in ensuring that political actors do not neglect the Muslim community upon assuming office.

Addressing the Chief Imam and the NMC, the former President, John Dramani Mahama, indicated that Presidential manifestoes in the past were written by experts who tried to second-guess the needs of Ghanaians. He also admitted that manifestos were written without the input of the general public.

“From 2020 we changed the mode, and we decided that we would rather go around and listen to the people, synthesize what the challenges and issues that they consider important are, and will use that as feed material for our manifesto and so we came out with the People’s Manifesto and it reflected the will of the people of Ghana because we had consulted them”.
John Dramani Mahama

Accordingly, he indicated that the Building Ghana Tour undertaken by the party aims to gather the contributions of Ghanaians and include these contributions in the party’s manifesto. As such he indicated that the NMC’s presentation of its proposal was timely.

Furthermore, the former President assured the NMC of his commitment to the development of the Muslim community. He emphasized that the party will take into careful consideration the proposals of the NMC in drafting its Presidential manifesto. “I will take a keen interest in your requests and work to ensure that the Muslim community benefits from what is due to them” he stated.

John Dramani Mahama also described the steps taken by the National Muslim Conference as proactive. He emphasized that even though the Building Ghana Tour gave him some ideas about the needs of the Muslim community, the NMC’s proposal has given him a better perspective of what the community expects from political parties and governments.

He further assured the National Chief Imam and the NMC of his readiness to work with all Ghanaians to build an inclusive society that seeks the development of Ghanaians regardless of their religious, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds.

Development In Muslim Communities

Accordingly, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia made similar remarks when the NMC together with the Chief Imam presented the NPP with its proposal to be considered in the party’s manifesto. He reiterated the NPP’s commitment to the development of the Zongo community especially in the urban areas.

Moreover, the Vice President indicated that the incumbent government has been intentional about the development of the Zongo communities nationwide for the past seven years.

“Our government has undertaken in Zongos across the country, such as classroom blocks, ICT libraries, mechanized water system, entrepreneurial training, scholarships, and astro turfs, funded through the Zongo Development Fund, which we established in fulfillment of our campaign promise”.
Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia

The Vice President specified that the NPP is committed to the development of Ghana through effective policies and structures. He assured the Chief Imam and the National Muslim Conference of his readiness to consider inputs of the NMC and other stakeholders in drafting his Presidential manifesto “for inclusive development”.

The trend of interest groups presenting political parties with their proposals to be considered in drafting their Presidential manifestoes is a new phenomenon that has emerged in Ghana’s political sphere.

Among other interest groups, a coalition of pre-tertiary teachers of Ghana and the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) have also demanded that their proposals be taken into account in drafting party manifestoes. These interest groups argue that their action is a step in ensuring accountability from political parties and governments.

Conclusively, while Ghana’s burgeoning democracy has areas that still need improvement, recent political happenings such as this are a testament to a thriving democracy that encourages citizen participation and upholds accountability.