Leadership Of Methodist Church Must Respect Constitution – Muslim Coalition

The Islamic Medical Association of Ghana (IMAGH) has dismissed claims by Wesley Girls’ High School (WGHS) and the Methodist Church that they refused to allow Muslim students to fast because fasting is detrimental to the health of students.

The impasse is already raising religious tension in the country.

In a statement signed by IMAGH President, Dr. Abdul Samed Tanko, a Cardiologist Consultant and its General Secretary, Dr. Hadi Mohammed Abdulah, a Neurosurgeon, they conclude that fasting is rather good for the body and will rather help students and therefore, the claims by the church and the school lacked any firm basis in science and medicine.

“This misinformation of the general public needs to stop. Contrary to the opinion expressed by the school, its PTA and the Methodist Church, several medical research conducted and published in reputable medical journals such as the New Journal of England medicine and John Hopkins Journal of Medicine have affirmed that intermittent fasting promotes blood sugar control via the reduction of insulin resistance and impacts positively on type 2 diabetes mellitus as well as minimizes risk of coronary heart disease and hyperlipidemia,” reads the statement.

Meanwhile, Islamic groups are increasingly getting incensed by the discrimination against their students in the formerly Christian school. 

A group calling itself the Coalition of Muslim Groups (COMOG) calls the development unfortunate but says the response of the leadership of the Methodist Church Ghana, parent to the school, is even worst and defiant of the constitution.

“At a time that the Muslim Ummah, who are the victims of such unpleasant religious intolerance have remained calm for a peaceful resolution of the matter, we least expected such a provocative response from the leadership of the Methodist,” the statement said.

What COMOG calls a provocative response is contained in a 4th May response from the leadership of the Church to the Ghana Education Service after the GES had responded to the brouhaha by directing leadership of Wesley Girls to allow students wishing to fast for religious reasons to do so.

According to the Church, the directive by the GES undermines discipline and the tenets of the school, concluding by stating that the Church which staunchly supports the school authorities, “cannot accede to the unilateral directive by the GES”.

“This stance by the leadership of the Methodist Church smacks of tacit endorsement of the intolerant behavior of the Headmistress and the Board Chairman which in our opinion cannot be the policy of the church which has tolerated other faiths in the schools originally for the church… We, therefore, take serious exception to this position which seeks to offset the directives of the GES, instructing the school to allow the practice of Fasting and Prayer by Muslim students. 

The Wesley Girls fasting brouhaha started when a Muslim parent stormed the school to withdraw his daughter in protest of the school authorities’ disallowance of her decision to fast during the Ramadan month.

The authorities have since explained the school has a policy against students fasting on campus because of past traumatic experiences. The position has been supported by the Old Students Association and the Methodist Church which established the school.