The Minister of Interior, Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka, has raised concerns about restrictions placed on Muslim students in some mission schools, warning that such practices risk creating deeper social tension if not addressed with urgency.
Muntaka criticised what he described as discriminatory treatment at Wesley Girls’ High School.
“Let me say this. And I sit here with the greatest of respect and with all my integrity. Wesley Girls ask girls to spy on even the Muslim girls to make sure they don’t pray.
“I’m told they hide. They have to hide to pray,” he said on JoyNews. “Look, we are playing with something that, I’m sorry to say, can degenerate our society.”
He contrasted the situation with practices in other second-cycle institutions. “My second-born attended Presbyterian Secondary School. They only have a place where they worship. It’s not a mosque, but they give them a space where they can worship,” he explained.
Muntaka added that schools such as Achimota have created similar arrangements that allow Muslim students to observe their faith without disrupting academic routines.
“In Achimota, they’re given a place where they can worship, but they adhere to all the school rules,” he said.
He argued that allowing students a brief moment to pray during break should not be treated as a violation. “During break time, the prayer takes sometimes five minutes. Don’t criminalise it because they are criminalising on those campuses,” he stated.
