General Secretary of Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC), Reverend Emmanuel T. Barrigah has said although activities of churches need to be regulated, the church ought to regulate its activities instead of the state.
This
comes after a directive by the Speaker of Parliament, Prof. Mike Oquaye that
churches have to be regulated.
But
Reverend Barrigah, though admitted there are charlatans operating all in the
name of Christianity, admonished government to allow the church to be regulated
internally.
“What
the state can do if it is possible, is to pass a legislation, which will compel
all independent churches which are perpetuating all kinds of things to join any
of the councils or form their own council with rules and regulations to abide
by. That will be better, than the state trying to regulate the activities of
churches”, Rev. Barrigah indicated.
He said this in an interview with A1 Radio on the sidelines of a gathering of leaders of Pentecostal and Charismatic Council held at Deeper Life Bible Church in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region.
Speaking on government’s proposal to tax
churches, Reverend Barrigah said government through the Ghana Revenue Authority
should tax churches which are earning income through their commercial
activities but not all churches in the country.
“The
Church is registered as a Non-Profit Organization. So, if a church is embarking
on a profit making venture, the GRA should get at them. But the tithes and
offerings that we take, these are the same things that we plough back into
providing social interventions for the citizens of this nation”, he said.
He
used the opportunity admonished the public to report any suspicious of terrorist
attack to security apparatus.
Source:
A1Radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Joshua Asaah