Dr. Edward Omane Boamah, a former Minister under the John Dramani Mahama government has weighed in on recent comments by Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia on the status of Jesus in Islam.
The Vice President is on record to have stated during a church event last week that Muslims like Christians believed that Jesus Christ is the saviour, expected to return to save the world.
The comment has been strongly contested on social media - especially on Facebook - with users calling out the Vice President for his claims.
Reacting to the development, Dr. Omane Boamah posted the now popular video in which Bawumia makes the claims and captioned it thus: "Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia be true to yourself!
"You don't have to distort the teachings of a respected religion, Islam, to win the NPP Flagbearer contest.
"You were the very person who deepened the Islam - Christianity factor in Ghana’s body politic; including referring to John Dramani Mahama as 'Mallam John'.
"If you wish to convert from Islam to Christianity, purposefully in pursuit of your short-term parochial political agenda, you may do so. But note that Christians and Muslims will not be deceived," the post concluded.
What exactly did Bawumia say?
On July 31, he was a special guest of honour at the launch of the 175th-anniversary celebrations of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church Ghana (EPCG), where he made a case for religious tolerance and peaceful co-existence.
“As children of the only and one true God, whether Christian or Muslim, we all believe in the God of Isaac, Jacob and Abraham. We all believe in the virgin birth of Mary.
"We all believe that Jesus Christ is the saviour and that Jesus Christ will come back again to save the world," he said in comments posted on the website of the presidency.
The point about belief in Jesus Christ as the saviour has roundly been contested by Muslims and Christians alike.
Most Muslims have rejected the claim stating that nowhere is it written that Jesus Christ is a saviour and will come back to save the world.
A number of opposition politicians have also taken swipes at him, among others Joyce Bawah Mogtari, an aide to former President John Dramani Mahama; and Joseph Yammin, a former deputy minister.
They have all accused him of putting his presidential ambitions in the NPP above his religious beliefs.
Status of Jesus in the Quran:
Jesus is not considered a son of God or God according to Islamic scriptures - be it the Quran or the Sunnah - the Prophetic traditions.
According to the scriptures, Isa (the Arabic name for Jesus) did not die, rather Allah raised him up to [Heaven] Himself, and he will descend before the Day of Resurrection and will follow Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).
According to islamqa.com, Jesus will prove the Jews to be wrong in their claim to have killed and crucified him. And he will prove the Christians to be wrong who exaggerated about him and said that he was God, or the son of God, or the second of three.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, the son of Maryam will descend among you as a just judge. He will break the cross, kill the pigs and abolish the jizyah (tax paid by non-Muslims in an Islamic state), and money will become so widespread that there will be no one who will accept it.” (Agreed upon; narrated by Muslim, no. 155).
SARA/PEN
Dr. Omane Boamah (left) and Dr. Bawumia