Ghana’s Parliament is demanding action against pastors and churches that prey on the gullibility of the unsuspecting Christian public.

The lawmakers argued in the chamber on Wednesday, 29 May 2019 that the state must step in with legislation to clamp down on what, in their view, is the abuse of Christian congregants, especially by one-man churches.

In a statement on the floor of the house on the activities of churches, the Member of Parliament for Mfantseman Constituency, Mr Ekow Hayford said it is about time the state took drastic action against pastors who abuse people’s right.

He called for legislation and an independent body to manage church activities in the country.

Contributing to the statement, the MP for Ablekuma Central, Mr Ebenezer Nartey argued that some pastors do not deserve the title.

He cited instances where some of them distribute lotto numbers, sell paraphernalia at exorbitant prices among others, as things that should be condemned.

The Speaker of Parliament, Prof Aaron Mike Oquaye, gave the joint committees of Youth, Sports and Culture, as well as the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee a one-month ultimatum to investigate the matter and report to the House about how best to regulate the activities of churches in the country.

Prof Oquaye also frowned on the holding of church services during working hours when, in his view, that can be done on Saturdays and Sundays.

He said: “It is dishonest that someone employs you and then you use the hours he pays you for, to go somewhere else, whether it’s a church or otherwise, to go and worship. There are times to worship, Saturdays and Sundays are there, evenings are there but definitely not man hours, otherwise, we cannot develop as a people…

“Honourable members, we live in a state where we all know that priests will keep people in camps, reportedly to heal them, and when they get worse they rush them to the Korle Bu [Teaching Hospital] yet these people cannot be held accountable for malpractice; what kind of unbridled liberty can that be? And, in fact, in England and other places, if you bring a personal circumstance, the doctor or nurse is mandated by law to report the circumstances to the police and action will be taken, this is how a nation develops.

“So, we may want to think whether we should also have some of these things clearly established so that when people are rushed in, in suspicious circumstances, the law will apply, accordingly. It is very important that if others can be dealt with for professional malpractice, no one should be able to get away from this… We expect these committees to work seriously as we receive a total commitment from both sides of the house on this particular matter”.

Source: class