The Liberia Islamic Unity Foundation (LIUF) Mosque was officially dedicated over the weekend by His Excellency President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, with a call for unity and peaceful co-existence among all Liberians.
The dedication ceremony was held on Friday, November 8, 2024 at the Unity Foundation Compound, Fish Market, Sinkor at 11:00 a.m.
Making special remarks at the dedication program, President Boakai expressed his profound gratitude for the level of unity and progress in the country, noting that nobody would venture to go to any country whose citizens are divided. “We’ve come to say to all the Muslims…Let’s work together in the interest of Liberia,” President Boakai noted.
“Not too long ago, we were able to encourage and arrange members of the Muslim community to go for the hajj to pray for our country. Today, we are here to dedicate the mosque that was built as a symbol of unity for the Muslim community and also at large for the people of this country. We want to thank all those who contributed to this project. You see it as a mosque, but we see it as a symbol of unity and devotion,” he added.
The President pledged his commitment to religious tolerance and to the unification of the people of Liberia in order to build a prosperous country for all.
Also making remarks at the program was the Grand Mufti of Zimbabwe, Ismail ibn Musa Menk, commonly known as Mufti Menk, who underscored the importance of respecting each other and living in unity and harmony. He, too, expressed appreciation for the effort made by the Muslim community of Liberia to construct such a gigantic structure for the sole purpose of worshiping Allah.
Other dignitaries who made remarks included the Chief Imam of the Republic of Liberia, Ali Krayee; Chairman of the National Muslim Council of Liberia, Alhaji Ibrahim Fumba Sheriff; Gbarpolu County Senator, Amara Mohammed Konneh; Montserrado County’s district #9 Representative, Frank Saah Foko, Jr.; a representative of the diplomatic corps, and representatives of the delegations from Guinea, Sierra Leone and the visiting scholars.
During the program, several individuals were recognized and certificated for their commitment and contribution to the completion of the mosque project, including the Governor of the Fula Community of Liberia, Alhaji Mohammed Bailo Sow (alias Super), the head of Fouta Corporation, Alhaji Hamidou Nyan, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Goodwill Business Center, Alhadji Idrissa Jalloh, the late Alhadji Mamadou Cellou Koubia Jalloh and the late Alhadji Abrahim Jah (alias AB Jah).
The Liberia Islamic Unity Foundation was conceived in 1981 when the founding fathers established a learning and worship center on a plot of land purchased to promote education and worship Allah. In 1984, the construction of a mosque was completed on the land and opened, with the late Cherif Sidi Mohammed Abdallah serving as both the President of the foundation and Chief Imam of the mosque. The day-to-day management of the mosque was however entrusted to Imam Mohammed Muctaru Jalloh, but due to the civil war Imam Jalloh fled the country for safety reasons, and eventually passed away while in exile.
During the civil war, the mosque was partly damaged, but efforts were made in the early 90s to renovate the structure after the first phase of the war. Since then, many well-educated and devoted Muslims have served as Chief Imam of the mosque, including the late Imam Abduraheem Sow and the current Chief Imam of the United Da’wah Ummah Mosque (known as 17th Street mosque), Alhaji Mustapha Balde.
Today, Alhaji Ousman Jalloh serves as the Chief Imam of the mosque, assisted by a team of other scholars, while the foundation is presided over by Cherif Abdallah as Chairman. Additionally, the Unity Mosque compound hosts the office of the National Chief Imam of Liberia, Ali Krayee.