The Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Upper Presbytery has proposed a number of measures to the Government to help deal with the current economic crisis.

The Upper Presbytery operates in the Upper East Region, Upper West Region and some parts of the Northern Region.

In a communiqué issued by the Church in Bolgatanga on Monday to climax its 5th Presbytery Conference, the Chairman of the Upper Presbytery of the Church , Reverend Esmond Wasaw Nagba, called on the Government to be prudent in its expenditure, pursue and retrieve all judgment debts that were unjustifiably paid as well as block the sources of revenue leakages.

The Church said it appreciates the fact that a number of factors such as the global decline in crude oil prices, fall in the price of gold and cocoa, and the increasing nature of the public sector wage bill contributed to the weakening of the economy, but it believes that with prudent expenditure, pursuance and retrieval of all judgment debts, and blocking the sources of all revenue leakages, the country’s economic base could be strengthened.

“Presbytery observes and appreciates the ongoing cleaning of the pay roll of ghost names and biometric registration of workers on government pay roll. We urge both government, civil and public sector authorities to intensify their efforts in this regard to ensure that our hard earned national revenue does not get swallowed by greedy people whose desire is to survive through “reaping where they do not sow.”

On the issue of the energy crisis, the Church called on the government to explore other alternatives sources such as biogas, solar, wind energy and other economic energy generation options.

Whilst commending the efforts of the National Peace Council for working to ensure religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence, the church urged the body to continue to dialogue to help iron out the thorny and petty issues, which threaten to divide the believers of God.

It said the Church is worried about the sudden violence against the vulnerable notable women and children and stated that this had increased the incidence of harassment, rape, defilement, abduction and other forms of violence.

“We urge the security agencies to intensify and coordinate intelligence to apprehend the perpetrators as well embark upon security education geared at equipping women and children and vulnerable in society to know and avoid all the potential traps and circumstances that can make them fall victim to perpetrators,” the Communiqué stated.

The Church commended the efforts of the Government for introducing the National Sanitation Day, appealed to the citizenry to desist from the apathetic response so as to help curb sanitation related diseases.

The Presbytery Conference, which was held at Sandema in the Builsa North District of the Upper East Region, was on the theme: “Be filled with the Holy Spirit: Five Years of Mission Work as Presbytery.”

It was aimed at examining the collective achievement of the Presbytery, challenges and to chart a way forward as well as draw the government attention to certain pertinent issues.