The Ghanaian Minaret

Kumasi: Dr Tawfiq Abdul Rahman Kulusey of the Nurul Ameen Masjid in Kumasi has retracted and apologised to all members of the Ahlussunna wal Jama’a fraternity for “harsh” statements regarding overreliance on moon sighting in Saudi Arabia for starting and ending Ramadan fast in Ghana.

In a video broadcast on Wednesday, he said upon sober reflection and further engagement with relatives, peers and scholars, he has realised that making those remarks on the public platform was at variance with the doctrine of Ahlussunna.

“I affirm that in my remarks there were errors which have offended parents, offended scholars and offended my peers,” he said.

He appealed for forgiveness from all those he has offended and said he has also forgiven all those who verbally attacked him for his remarks.

The scholar had been under pressure and suffered criticism since he delivered his Eid Khutbah on Monday, March 31, 2025.

During his sermon, Dr Kulusey averred that the continuous prioritisation of moon sighting in Saudi Arabia over local sighting was a stumbling block to attaining uniformity in the start and ending of Ramadan in the country.

He urged the Sunnah fraternity to learn from countries with proximity to Saudi Arabia that rely on local sighting.

These countries he mentioned included Jordan, Egypt, Iran and Bahrain.

He further alleged that the Hilal Committee of Ahlussunna wal Jama’a failed to embark on a mission to search for the crescent locally after it had emerged that Saudi Arabia had sighted the moon.

Based on a sighting in Saudi Arabia, the Ahlussunna wal Jama’a marked their Eid on Sunday, March 30, while the National Chief Imam declared Eid on Monday, March 31, as the Shawwal crescent could not be sighted in Ghana.