The Ghana Police Service has reminded the general
public, including all religious leaders, especially pastors that public pronouncement of doom prophecies remains a crime and anyone who engages in it during
end-of-year church services will be arrested and dealt with according to the
law.
This was contained in a
statement issued by the law enforcement agency on Tuesday, December 27, 2022,
and posted on its social media platforms.
“As the year 2022 draws
to a close, we wish to once again entreat the general public, especially
faith-based groups to ensure continuous compliance with the law as it relates
to the communication of prophecies.
“Let us continue to
remember that whereas we have the right to practice our faith in religion,
freedom of worship and speech, this right must not be exercised in violation of
the rights of others and the public interest.
“As part of sustaining
the gains made so far, the Police Service has adopted 27th December of each
year as the Prophecy Communication Compliance Day. This day is being set aside
to remind all of us, to practice our faith within the confines of the law to
ensure a safe, secure environment, free of anxiety generated from predictions
of impending harm, danger, or death.
“We wish to take this
opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year,” the statement read in part.
The statement went further
to commend religious organizations and leaders for complying with the law over
the past year that the Police Service intensified its enforcement.
It added that going
forward, the service has adopted December 27 of every year as a day for
reminders against the violation of the law that frowns on illegal
communications.
Last year, the police
service warned that it would arrest and prosecute any pastor who engaged in
doom prophecy publicly, as the worrying trend that had been the order of the
day over the years was gradually becoming an annual status quo, where some
pastors even accused others of plagiarizing their prophecies.
The stance taken by the police has since brought considerable sanity as
pastors who were guilty of the practice did not want to incur the wrath of the
no-nonsense Inspector-General of the Ghana Police Service, Dr George Akuffo
Dampare.
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