The Chairman of the Church of Pentecost Worldwide, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, was elected president of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council (GPCC) at the end of the 2023 conference of Heads of Churches and Organisations held at Gomoa Fetteh in the Central Region last Thursday.
He replaces the Reverend Professor Paul Frimpong Manso who has ended his tenure of office.
The three-day event, which brought together heads, General Secretaries and Regional Executives of the GPCC, was held on the theme “United for God’s Glory-John 17:21”.
Speaking to the Ghanaian Times on the sidelines of the event, Apostle Nyamekye stated that the GPCC would continue to champion the good interests of the public as the church represents majority of Ghanaians.
According to him, whatever concerned the State concerned the church; therefore it would remain interested in whatever affected the lives of the people.
He cited the current disappointment of some members of the public in the banking sector of the country, due to the government’s Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP), saying the development had negatively affected many.
The revered man of God, therefore, cautioned government against implementing policies that would make the public completely lose interest in banking.
Mr Nyamekye said, “The church cannot separate itself from the State because it is a cross section of the people in the land. We can never say whatever is going on economically does not affect the church and we will also never look unconcerned”.
“Our message to the government is that whatever decisions they take should not negatively impact the economy to the extent that people will start shying away from banking activities and start keeping money in their homes. The banks must be seen to be credible and Ghanaians must have faith in the country’s banking system,” he added.
A representative of the GPCC, Right Reverend Dr Gordon Kisseih, in his remarks, reiterated that government’s DDEP had eroded the confidence of the public in the country’s financial sector.
He, therefore, called on government to ensure efforts targeted at putting the economy back on track did not rather push people into further hardship or rob individuals of their hard earned investments.
A broader consultation, he said, was very necessary before finalising everything concerning the DDEP.
Founder and Apostle General of the Royal House Chapel, Sam Korankye Ankrah, on his part, underscored the need for church leaders to remain united and promote peaceful co-existence among themselves and their members.
This, he said, was very necessary “because the glory of God cannot be present where there is no unity”.
BY RAISSA SAMBOU
