Muslims in Ho Zongo have returned to the Ho Central Mosque for prayers following its reopening by the National Chief Imam on Saturday, October 10, after months of closure over a leadership dispute.
The mosque was closed indefinitely after violent confrontations linked to disagreements over leadership positions. A shooting incident during the unrest reportedly left 13 people injured.
Despite the reopening, tensions surrounding the leadership disagreement remain unresolved, raising concerns about the possibility of further violence if the underlying issues are not addressed.
Ho Zongo youth leader Mohammed Salisu Kidzah, speaking to Citi News, welcomed the reopening and said it had been met with excitement among residents.
He, however, stressed that the reopening should not prevent efforts to ensure accountability for the shooting incident.
“We are happy for the reopening. There were a lot of people here in the morning celebrating the reopening. As for the shooting incident, it is a matter of the law and we will pursue it to the latter and we want the law to take its course,” he said.
Mr Kidzah warned that failure to pursue the matter through the legal system could create uncertainty about the community’s safety, noting that the mosque had allegedly been targeted in previous shooting incidents.
“We don’t know what will happen next if we don’t follow it to the latter because it wasn’t the first time they came to shoot at the mosque,” he added.
He said residents wanted lasting peace and recalled that the National Chief Imam had also appealed for calm during his visit to the community.
