Church of Pentecost explains project to decongest prisons
The Chairman of the Church of Pentecost, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, says the church’s decision to construct correctional facilities across the country is to decongest the crowded prisons, and not to encourage crime.
He has, therefore, advised members of the church to ignore criticisms by the pubic who are opposed to the church’s decision to construct prisons facilities.
Advertisement
The decision, he said, had been gravely misconstrued.
Apostle Nyamekye explained the objective for the project when he met ministers and officers of the church in the Kasoa area to throw light on the five˗year strategic vision of the church, dubbed “Vision 2023”, with the overarching theme:
“Possessing the Nations: Equipping the church to transform every sphere of society with values and principles of the Kingdom of God”.
Approaches
As part of the strategic approaches adopted to realise the vision, the church has partnered the government to undertake some social intervention initiatives, including the construction of prisons facilities, which has been ridiculed in some quarters of the public.
Reacting to this, the chairman stated: “As a church, we are in the business of seeking and saving sinners. So, essentially sinners are our clients.
It is, therefore, expected that we will take an interest in facilities where sinners are kept.”
He further explained that the construction of prison facilities by the church was part of efforts to assist the government in solving the challenge of overcrowding in Ghanaian prisons.
He said the correctional centres would also have workshops and church auditoriums, among other facilities, that would contribute to the reformation of inmates.
“The Nsawam Medium Security Prison, I am told, was built for 800 inmates, but currently houses close to 3,500 inmates.
That is an excess of about 2,700 inmates.
If as a church we can put up very big and magnificent auditoriums, which we only use on Sunday mornings and in the evenings and look on unconcerned as our brothers and sisters struggle to find a place to lay their heads, then what kind of followers of Jesus Christ are we?” he quizzed.
Gospel
In addition to decongesting prisons, Apostle Nyamekye said that the facilities would serve as correctional centres where inmates would be transformed with the gospel message of Jesus Christ, equipped with skills training and reformed in order to be reintegrated into society as responsible citizens after serving their prison terms.
He noted that the church had taken appropriate steps to give inmates who had the ability to pursue formal education at all levels — basic, senior high and tertiary — the opportunity to do so.
Other social interventions being undertaken by the church in line with Vision 2023 are the construction of boreholes, bus stop shelters, Community-Based Health Planning and Services compounds, police stations and an environmental care campaign.
Apostle Nyamekye, therefore, called on members of the church to own the vision and commit themselves to ensure its effective implementation.