Baba Jamal
Former MP for Akwatia asnd private legal practitioner, Mohammed Baba Jamal, has stripped off his party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for proposing to build morgues in Zongo communities nationwide.
The NDC and its flagbearer, John Mahama, appear firm on their decision to build mortuaries in Zongo Communities when elected into power come December 7, 2020.
But Mr. Jamal believes that is not in keeping with Islamic religion as far as burying the dead is concerned.
He was reacting to claims in the media that Mr. Mahama had promised to build more mortuaries in Zongo Communities as contained in the party’s manifesto.
According to him, by the tenets of Islam, Muslims do not allow their dead to be kept even for a day before burial.
He stated that Prophet Mohammed in his teachings declared that Sallah, marriage, and burial rites should be performed immediately without delay.
Mr. Jamal said “Prophet Mohammed said that there are three things that must be addressed immediately when they happened. The first thing which must not be delayed is the time for Sallah, marriage rites, and the third one is when someone dies the person must be buried immediately because he is not part of the living and that is why Muslims don’t keep the dead in morgues, but due to law and technology, it has become necessary that we will keep dead bodies at the morgue for doctors to conduct postmortems”.
Speaking on Okay FM’s Ade Akye Abia Morning Show, Mr Jamal stated that because death is an unavoidable consequence of life, Muslims believe it is important to know where their dead relatives are buried.
The former Member of Parliament for Akwatia said that former President Mahama’s decision to comply with the desire of Muslim leaders for morgues in Zongos, eventhough it is contrary to their own religious beliefs, is due to technology and law which requires postmortem of dead bodies.
“Due to technology, it has become relevant that if someone dies, postmortem must be carried out and this may be contrary to the religion of the Muslims but it is a matter of law that if someone dies, there must be examined to find the cause of death as it is done”, he says.
“One thing which is clear is that our manifesto is based on the interaction with people in our society and so when we went to the Zongos, we had a discussion with the elders of the Zongo Communities and Imams and the citizens of Zongo and they said one of the most important thing they need is to have mortuaries in some areas like Nima and Ashaiman Communities”, according to him.
“That is what we asked the elders of the Muslim communities and they said that will bring an end to this issue if we are to construct morgues, we should make same available in major Zongo communities like Nima, Ashaiman, and Koforidua Zongos. This is because, whether we like it or not muslims in the Zongo communities will die”.
By Melvin Tarlue