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Are we all really created by God?
I was listening to a radio programme and the host stated that his brother always say that black people were not created by God.
There is a popular saying in Ghana that when you are going to church and you meet a Caucasian along the way, stop going to church because you have met God.
Again, listening to radio while driving home, a caller from the US was complaining bitterly about the negative attitude of a lady which bothers on insanity and as I listened about a video someone sent him showing a woman who just left a polythene bag containing rubbish by a roadside and just left.
The comment pushed my thoughts to a known behaviour among some Ghanaians who pour waste into drains just before it rains and then I recalled the statement made by the brother of the radio host that I began my story with and the question that came to mind is that ‘Are we all really created by God?
The insanity is becoming too much and one begins to wonder if indeed such social deviants are all indeed created in the image of God. A couple of days ago, there was a heavy downpour in Accra.
This resulted in the flooding of a certain portion of the Accra Cape Coast highway, specifically between the traffic light after West Hills Mall and the traffic light at Old Barrier.
This caused that section of the road to be immotorable and therefore those moving from Kasoa towards Accra were forced to use one lane, the inner lane of the three lanes heading towards Kasoa from Accra.
They then rejoined their side of the road after the Old Barrier and continued towards Accra.
This would have created a bit of a trafficc jam but it would have been manageable. However, the insanity which has characterised our society set in when some motorists who were heading towards Kasoa, moved from their lane and decided to insanely face the oncoming traffic from Kasoa after Weija Junction and it became a total traffic mess. I spent three hours in traffic that day from McCarthy Hills to Old Barrier, that short stretch.
Elections are to be conducted by the body constitutionally mandated to exercise such authority and as part of the process, there is the need to register first time voters as well as those who had already turned 18 but due to some reason have not registered to be captured on the voters list.
This exercise is supposed to be a very peaceful one devoid of any violence but what are we hearing and seeing. There are credible reports on TV and radio of violent incidences at designated registration centres. There are also rumours of under aged people being registered contrary to the regulations governing the registration exercise.
The insanity has reached absurd levels and people are bold enough to confront the EC that they are refusing to register their ward who turned 18 this year.
The parent apparently sent a petition to the EC stating that it is now that his ward has turned 18 but at the time he was registered for the 2020 elections his son was actually 14 years old, which means that his son has committed a crime.
I believe that the Bible is the word of God and that is my unshakeable belief as a child of God, otherwise I would have doubted Genesis 1:26 which says “And God said, let us make man in our image…” and also Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in His own image…”
If one looks at what is being displayed in our society, one is tempted to ask the question, “Are all of us really created by God”?
By Laud Kissi-Mensah
THE typical itinerant salesman in Sikaman is a herbalist. He is normally a slim macho with the capacity to perambulate the expanse of area covering the triangle of Accra-Tema-Ashiaman. In short, he can walk a total of 60 miles a day, marketing a product that cures every disease, including poverty. 
The door-to-door herbal pharmacist advertises his product by word of mouth. He has nothing to do with the Food and Drugs Board (FDB). After all, his concoctions do not feature on FM stations.
Those herbalists who cannot walk to propagate the herbal gospel, liaise with drivers of mass transportation and their mates. They are, therefore, given the chance to sell their products on Benz buses that ply the routes.
Normally, the herbalist starts his sales message with a prayer and Bible study. He asks the passengers to bow down their heads in supplication to God the father, the son, the Holy Spirit.
When a herbalist asks the passengers to close their eyes and bow their heads, Moslems on board naturally feel offended. They feel that the herbalist has no right to assume that every passenger is a Christian. They think such an assumption is an affront to Islam.
So a Moslem on board will raise the hand for a point of order. He’ll remind the herbalist that it would be in his own interest to mind his language.
“Be careful the way you address people in a public place. Not every person here is a Christian,” he’d state assertively.
Of course, the herbalist will promptly ignore him, but would all the same “watch” his tongue. Who knows whether or not the Moslem brother is inspired by Quoranic zeal to defend the tenets of Islam to the hilt?
When he starts saying, “Wallahi!” and “Inshallah!” it could be the beginning of proclaiming Islam as supreme, a point which must be driven home with talibanic precision.
So the herbalist must tread carefully lest he steps on fire.
The herbalist could even add a measure of mirth to it all, by announcing that Christians on board today have very interesting company on the journey, but that should not detract from the business of the day.
The Moslem brother will weigh the words carefully and offer a wry smile.
He must be careful the occasion does not degenerate into the use of semantics and proverbial oration to deride his conviction that public utterances must be mindful of religious sensibilities. He has made his point very clear and expects that it is taken in good faith in the interest of a peaceful journey.
The herbalist will now open the New Testament and preach salvation, stating clearly that salvation can come only through Jesus Christ and NOBODY else.
The Moslem brother will now start twitching his moustache. The visible and almost revolutionary reflexes of his upper lip can be an indication that sentiments have begun superseding reason, and the outcome could well be tragic now shift uneasily in his seat.
The time has come for him to also express his right to the religion of his fore-bears. He’ll put his hand into his pocket and rise to his feet. The time has indeed come!
This article was first published on Saturday, September 9, 2006
When the cause of a particular problem like sickness, disease, sudden illness, a social issue etc. are not known, it stands to reason that resolving it becomes a huge challenge.
Citizens would understand the government when public announcements are made to the effect that government is trying to find a solution to the issue, even though it is taking a while for it to be resolved because citizens are rational beings.
On the other hand, if the solution to a particular issue is known to everybody but the government for whatever reason, is dragging its feet in resolving it, citizens become frustrated and begin to lose trust in their leaders.
One such issue is the heavy traffic along a section of the Kasoa – Odokor road. A short stretch of bad road between the traffic light at the Weija Government Hospital and the entrance to the entrance of the overhead that leads to the N1, is the cause of the problem but nothing is being done about it, day after day, week after week, month after month. Thus is clearly unacceptable.
Another issue that requires urgent attention is the lack of pavements along a lot of streets in parts of the various Municipal Assemblies. Exercise is a prerequisite for long life and healthy living and for those of us who it has become a way of life, this issue of people putting up structures right to the edge of the drains beside the roads, are making life difficult for us.
We are compelled to walk along the roads, putting our lives at serious risk. Pedestrians should never be compelled to compete with vehicles on our streets and roads. Roads and streets are made for vehicles and pavements are made for pedestrians. That is the norm. Any attempt to normalise a situation where pedestrians are mingling with vehicles is insanity.
It is the road regulations that makes it so and therefore district or municipal assemblies are to take responsibility and ensure that spaces for pavements are not encroached upon. Citizens have rights that must be protected by their leaders and making pavements available to pedestrians, is one of them.
When we hear of teachers having sex with students, it appears it is something recent. It is not a new phenomenon. It has been there since Adam. Perhaps this issue is getting much attention due to the proliferation of social media. It was an open secret in times past when Teachers were in relationships with female students and some married them immediately after completion of school.
Some teachers were also known to be having unholy interactions with female pupils but due to the times that these acts occurred, human rights issues and the awareness around it, allowed such unscrupulous teachers to get away with their crimes.
Now we are in a different era and so a Headmaster is now in hot waters. He is alleged to have raped about 19 female students and as usual, some officials tried to cover it up and are also in hot waters and their actions or inactions in the matter are under investigation.
Why the man has been allowed to roam freely without being arrested is simply mind boggling. It appears that the law applies differently, depending on who you are. This issue came to public attention sometime in August this year, yet the police had not arrested or invited this man for question regarding the rape allegation.
It has come out that he is a Constituency Secretary of the ruling party and the question in the public domain is that, is it because he is a political figure that is why he is still walking around without questioning? I believe in the rule of law so let us hold our breadth and let the proper thing be done.
The police must however be seen to be active in this matter. God bless.
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