Church will continue to speak against looters of national coffers — Presby Moderator
The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rt Rev. Dr Abraham Nana Opare Kwakye, has said he would wage a relentless crusade against the tendency of fellow citizens to loot the national coffers.
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He said the church would not relent in speaking against any such acts, no matter who was in the leadership of the country.
“The tendency of some of our fellow citizens looting the national coffers is a matter of great public concern and we shall not relent in speaking against any such acts, no matter who is in the leadership of our dear country.
“As a leader of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG), I will lead the church to proclaim its prophetic voice on national and global matters,” he assured.
Induction service
In his first address at an induction service held at the Ebenezer Congregation of the church at Osu in Accra yesterday, Rt Rev. Kwakye pointed out that the resources of the nation were meant for the entire nation and, therefore, had to be shared equitably to the benefit of all.
He also described as a security concern rising unemployment and hopelessness in the country due to the economic crisis and gave an assurance that the church would not relent in its efforts to demand accountability.
Rt Rev. Kwakye, visibly poised for action, also touched on the continued devastation of the environment through illegal mining (galamsey) and filth, and said that was a matter that “we must all deal with.”
He called on the church to let the world know that a new dawn had come and urged them to stand together, irrespective of the varied ideological and political differences to build a just community and a prosperous nation.
Profile
Until the General Assembly of PCG elected him as Moderator on August 17, this year, Rt Rev. Kwakye was the Chairman of the Ga Presbytery.
He takes over from Very Rev. Professor Joseph Obiri Yeboah Mante, who ended his tenure last Thursday.
The Moderator received 220 ‘Yes’ endorsement as against six ‘No’ by the General Assembly.
Rev. Dr Seth Kissi who received 54 nominations, and Rev. Dr Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong who also received 22, withdrew in support of Rev. Dr Kwakye who obtained 119 nominations to head for the endorsement alone.
Coming into office as the 19th Moderator of the General Assembly of the PCG, Rt Rev. Kwakye who is an old student of Tema Secondary School, was commissioned by the Presbyterian Church of Ghana into ministry in 1997 at Kaneshie and ordained in 1999 at Odumase Krobo.
After his probation at the La Bethel Presby Church in 1997, he was posted to the Christ Congregation, Adentan in 1999 as the Minister in Charge and later to the Calvary Congregation, Haatso.
He assumed appointment as a Lecturer at the Department for the Study of Religions, University of Ghana, Legon in January 2014, and was promoted to the rank of Senior Lecturer in February 2020.
Will of God
While he acknowledged that the responsibility to lead was a herculean one, Rt Rev. Dr Kwakye gave an assurance that he would seek to know the will of God only, and to serve God diligently with all his heart.
In that regard, he asked for the continuous prayers of all every day for a fresh anointing and the strength to do his work.
Rt Rev. Dr Kwakye also expressed his sincere appreciation and gratitude to his late parents and all who contributed in diverse ways to his life, academic and priesthood journey.
Sermon
In a sermon, a former Moderator of the General Assembly of the PCG, Very Rev. Professor Emmanuel Martey, advised the Moderator to be a leader according to the Spirit and not the flesh.
He also advised the new leader to be after the order of the Holy Spirit.
Very Rev. Prof. Martey said a leader of the church ought to take holiness and the Holy Spirit seriously and asked the Moderator to keep on asking, seeking and knocking during his stewardship while he remained in constant communion with the Lord.
Quoting from St Augustine of Hippo and Isaiah 63 verse 10, the former Moderator said the church had a mixture of both good and bad people.
He, therefore, charged the new Moderator to be revitalised according to the Spirit.
Religious freedom
The Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, who graced the occasion, assured the church and Ghanaians of the commitment of the government to uphold religious freedom and fostering an environment where all faiths could thrive.
Dr Bawumia said the occasion underscored the harmonious relationship between the State and the diverse religious bodies, adding that the government recognised the pivotal role that faith played in shaping the moral fabric of the nation.
He said the church had through its various community outreach programmes exemplified the values and expressed gratitude to the PCG for its recent support to the victims of the dam spillage.
