Only pastors who do not work and depend on their congregants monies to survive are the ones flouting government’s ban on public gathering.
This is the view of the Leader and Founder of In him is Life Church International, Reverend Isaac Opoku, popularly known as ‘Obor Tuo.’
Public gathering
The government of Ghana on March 15, 2020, suspended all public gatherings in the country with immediate effect following confirmation of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Ghana. Following President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s directive for the ban on social gathering, some church leaders have violated the ban and instead organise some church services, with one being arrested by the police in Kumasi and later granted bail.
Survival
Speaking to Graphic Online, Rev. Opoku said if pastors had something doing themselves, even if the church is shut down for months, they will not go hungry. He said no pastor should engage in any practice that could expose their members to contracting the novel coronavirus. He expressed the worry that some pastors are using their members as if they owned God, pointing out that many big churches and synagogues around the world have closed down following the Coronavirus pandemic. He said for instance that, synagogues in Isreal as well as big churches in Italy, UK, and France have all closed down following the Coronavirus outbreak.
Rev. Opoku noted that it was wrong for any church or church leader to say that they have machines to screen their members of the virus and therefore they would still conduct church services.
Caution
He has, therefore, admonished all believers who are home to continue to pray for God to intervene in the pandemic, saying God has power over all things and would be able to change the current situation. He, however, urged all believers to follow guidelines outlined by health bodies in preventing the spread of the disease. He also advised pastors who take their members to Achimota forest to pray to refrain from such acts, pointing out that such actions could help the spread of the Coronavirus. Rev. Opoku similarly advised politicians to be united in fighting the pandemic, noting that this is the time we must all come together to fight a common enemy. He said the US$100 million earmarked for combating the Coronavirus ought to be used to build facilities that could be used to contain the spread.
According to him, if the money was not going to be used to build facilities for containment and treatment as well as for awareness creation, then the money ought to be returned to the Finance Ministry.
Rev. Opoku also urged the Electoral Commission (EC) to suspend its planned voter registration exercise, noting that the exercise could put many lives at risk for contracting the coronavirus.
