The organisation contended that the political manipulation and the struggle for authority by some so-called stakeholders who have arrogated to themselves the exclusive right to take decisions for Muslims, contributed to some of last year’s Hajj problems.

Speaking at a press conference to state its position on the 2007/2008 Hajj fiasco, the General Secretary of FMC, Sheikh Mohammed Kpakpo Addo called on government to dissolve the Interim Hajj Management Committee and further initiate a judicial probe into the affairs of the committee.

He said the FMC, which is the official mouthpiece of all Muslim organisations in the country, should be given the opportunity to, in consultation with the National Chief Imam and other well-meaning Muslims, set up a new broad-based national body to handle Hajj matters.

“The FMC, having closely observed the power play and arm-twisting, accusations and counter accusations, and after analyzing the motives and roles of all the players, wishes to resolve to take appropriate steps to halt the rot once and for all.”

He noted that it was on record that the FMC in collaboration with the National Chief Imam had efficiently once managed the operations of Hajj without a hitch, until the erstwhile AFRC government came to power.

Sheikh Addo said the FMC was not against government’s participation in the operations of Hajj, since the element of state protocol and regulations could not be zeroed out of it, saying what his outfit was against was rather the impositions that render the system and the procedures ‘useless’.

“The FMC strongly registers its regret at the shameful malfeasance that has engulfed Hajj operations in recent times in this country, the consequence of which shot the humiliation and frustrations of Muslims to hypertensive level,” he said.

The General Secretary however commended the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Nuhu Sharubutu for calming the waters by calling on Ghanaian Muslims for tolerance, unity and peace in the face of the crisis.

In his view, recent “twist and turns” of events in Muslim religious affairs in the country had led many to question the leadership, legitimacy and mandates in Islamic affairs.

He said the legal status of FMC made it a legitimate body to intervene in the affairs of Muslims, as its powers are enshrined in the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.