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Chiefs are not pagans, idol worshippers
The Kyidomhene of Aburi in the Akuapem South District of the Eastern Region has debunked the notion that Chiefs are pagans and ,therefore, engage in idol worship.
According to Nana Opare Kwarfo this outmoded mentality should be consigned to the dustbin of history because the chieftaincy institution was now replete with traditional rulers who worshipped God other than idols.
He said these at a Thanksgiving Service at Aburi on Sunday to hand over the
Emmanuel Presbyterian Church of Ghana, which was renovated by the Kyidomhene in collaboration with the Aburi Adonteng Traditional Council at the cost of Gh¢51,000.00, to the church.
The Kyidomhene quoted from Psalm 138:4-8 and said David was a prominent King in the days of the Israelites who God used mightily and wrote that Kings and chiefs would be shaped by his experiences and examples, to embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ and worship the Almighty God.
“This is exactly what we are doing so we are not Pagans, we are Christians and strong Presbyterians before we became Chiefs and if Chiefs and Kings become religious to serve their Creator, their Kingdoms would be better” he stressed.
He said every good king or chief should be concerned with their call to duty of their Creator with confidence in Jehovah that He would secure and perfect whatever work was entrusted into their hands.
Nana Opare Kwarfo, therefore, appealed to Ghanaians to also see the chiefs and kings in the country as children of God with specific assigned roles to play in society.
“Do not see us as evil but support us to make the Church a worthy place to die for and Ghana a better place to live in” he said.
Preaching the sermon, Rev Emmanuel Okyere Otu thanked the Chiefs for their love and commitment to solve one of the biggest challenges of the Church.
According to him, the Aburi Presbyterian Church was 174 years but leaked profusely so the Kyidomhene Nana Opare Kwarfo , Okuapemman Adontenhene Otobuor Gyan Kwasi and the traditional council volunteered to re-roof and re-paint the whole building at the cost of over Gh¢51,000.00 to befit the status of Aburi especially the House Of God.
He advised the congregation to seek God always through Jesus Christ because all the indications of the second coming of Christ were being fulfilled .
Rev Otu cited the life of King David in the Bible and said though God was with him in all his dealings he passed through hardship but never stopped praising and thanking God and urged them to take a cue from that to have faith in God and it would be well with them.
The Church presented special edition of the Holy Bible to each of the chiefs to show appreciation to them for helping in the renovation of the building.
The Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh Dompreh, has expressed concern over delays in the release of the District Assemblies Common Fund, warning that the situation is stalling development across the country.
On his facebook page, he described as a matter of urgent national importance, the Minority Chief Whip pointed to what he sees as a growing crisis of unpaid contractors, abandoned projects, and halted infrastructure works in many districts.
He noted that several communities are grappling with half completed schools, unfinished health facilities, abandoned markets, deteriorating roads, and stalled sanitation projects.
According to him, many contractors who have executed projects for district assemblies have not been paid, forcing some construction firms to demobilise from sites while workers lose their jobs.
He stressed that the District Assemblies Common Fund is not a discretionary allocation but a constitutional requirement under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, intended to support development at the local level.
In his view, years of delayed releases and accumulated arrears have weakened district development financing and disrupted projects meant to improve living conditions in communities.
He further argued that some payments made in recent years were largely the settlement of old debts rather than funding for new or ongoing projects, a situation he believes has affected contractor confidence and local economic activity.
He described the issue as more than a budgetary challenge, characterising it as a development emergency and a governance concern.
He therefore urged the appropriate authorities to pay outstanding DACF arrears, settle contractors who have completed their work, and ensure that transfers to districts are automatic and predictable.
He maintained that decentralisation can only succeed when district assemblies receive adequate and timely funding to carry out development projects.
He emphasised that stalled projects directly affect ordinary citizens, since they rely on such infrastructure for education, healthcare, transportation, sanitation, and economic activities.
He called for renewed attention to grassroots development, insisting that national progress should not be concentrated only in major cities but extended to all communities.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Richard Appiah, the footballer who killed two children and stored part of their bodies in a fridge at Abesim in the Bono Region in 2021 has been handed a lifetime sentence.
This was after a five member panel of judges at the Accra High Court returned a verdict of guilty against the convict.
Appiah, 32, also a draughtsman would spend the rest of his life in prison after he was convicted of murder.
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BY MALIK SULLEMANA
