General News of Tuesday, 2 June 2020
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
Some churches are stubborn, monitor them – Kwesi Pratt to govt
Kwasi Pratt Jnr, managing editor for Insight newspaper
Kwasi Pratt has advised the Akufo-Addo led government to strictly monitor the activities of churches to ensure they are adhering to the directives given to them as they re-open in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic.
According to him, some churches are likely to have their services exceeding the one hour limit given to them by the president during his 10th address to the nation on May 31, 2020.
“What ways are we going to ensure that some of these churches follow the president’s directives? Some churches are very stubborn, and for some pastors, their money is way more important to them than someone’s life, you all know that already. We need to have some level of policing,” he said.
He added that the country has been flooded by numerous churches, so it is important to check all of them as they have increased the chances of being centers for the spread of the virus.
“There are so many churches in some Ghanaian vicinities. One small street, you can find about 15 to 20 churches... We have to enter some of these churches and count whether they are up to or more than a hundred,” he stated.
Speaking in an interview with Peace FM’s Kwame Sefa Kayi earlier today, June 2, 2020, monitored by GhanaWeb, Mr. Pratt further explained his stance on the need for churches to be regulated to guarantee absolute compliance with the president’s directive.
“Someone may say it is not necessary but it’s very necessary. Someone who doesn’t follow the directives will could infect you with the virus. Some of them will go to filling stations after church, others will go and cook at chop bars after church, so if we do not ensure that the church follows the directives, we will all be adversely affected,” he said.
He concluded that Germany reopened their churches in the midst of the pandemic and they are facing the repercussions.
“Germany recently opened their churches, and in less than three days, about a hundred churchgoers were infected, out of about 200 that attended the service,” he stated.
