Head of Papal Dames and Knights Forum of Ghana, Sir Fosuaba Mensah Banahene, has said the Nana Akufo-Addo-led government is demanding that the Catholic Church hand over all lands occupied by Catholic schools in the country to the government.
In a letter addressed to the leadership of laity groups in the country, Sir Mensah Banahene says the Catholic Church in Ghana is facing a crisis as government systematically strips it of control over their pre-tertiary schools.
“Emerging credible reports indicate that the government of the day is now asking the Catholic Church to surrender all lands occupied by the Catholic Schools in the country to the government,” the letter said.
The letter highlights how the Church is unable to train students in the Catholic faith and doctrines due to the lack of control over their schools.
He also notes that unbecoming behavior among students in Catholic schools have surfaced, but the Church is unable to act decisively as effective control of these schools is in the hands of the government.
According to the letter, efforts by the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference and the Christian Council of Ghana, as well as other faith leaders, to engage with the government over the issue of control of the Mission and Faith Schools in Ghana have been repeatedly scuttled by the government.
It adds that in 2019, all the faith organizations and the government drew up a Memorandum of Understanding, but the government failed to sign it despite repeated assurances.
Sir Fosuaba Mensah Banahene argues that it is time for a protest by the Catholic Laity against what he describes as “the continued, subtle and unjustified expropriation or nationalization of Catholic Schools in Ghana.”
He is of the conviction that a protest by the Catholic laity will send a strong signal to the government that it is not just the Ghana Catholic Bishops that are fighting for the control of their schools but also the entire Catholic Church.
Catholic Trends is following this story keenly and will be back with some updates.
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The church should own the schools
Waiting for the date of protest
Please share the letter of the government demanding the church to surrender school lands with us.
I remember the seige of Jerico led by Archbishop Palmer Buckle during the Rawlings revolution days. Please the whole Church in Ghana should stand up. I have read about the battle of Lipanto. Let’s see the knights and their bravery. The time has come to stand up against the greed and looting behaviour of Nana Akuffo Addo ‘s government.