1st batch of Christian pilgrims leave for Israel July 15

The first batch of Christian pilgrims will be leaving for Israel on July 15, Minister of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Kofi Dzamesi has said.

“On the 15th of July, we are doing what I term as a pilot project. We are going with about 100 people. I will lead that group of people. We’ll go to Israel and then once we are there, we’ll be signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Religious Affairs in Israel and our Ministry so that there will be proper understanding. And then we can also involve the Ghana Embassy in Israel so that things can be very smooth for our citizens who want to go to Israel for pilgrimage so it is very much in the interest of the Israeli government,” Mr Dzamesi said on Tuesday, 20 June.

According to him, the government of Ghana is merely facilitating the trip for the pilgrims.

“The facilitation is that there is an amount of money that we’ll pay and that will take care of your ticket, your hotel bills, insurance, your tour guide, your bags, your food [and] everything that will make you go and come back without any hitch. The Ministry facilitates that but let me make this point clear, government is not paying any money [to any pilgrim],” he told Accra-based Citi FM.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Church of Pentecost, Apostle Dr Kwadwo Nimfour Opoku Onyinah, has described as a misplaced priority, government’s decision to sponsor Christian pilgrims.

In Dr Onyinah’s view, the funds for such sponsorship should be channelled into something profitable for the country.

“I don’t think government should sponsor people to travel. We’ve got so many things to do, the nation has so many challenges. The money of the nation should be used to develop the nation,” he said.

“If someone wants to travel for religious purpose, the person should be asked to pay his own expenses, but if the government opens the opportunity for us and gives us the formal way to make things for people, I cherish that and I thank the government for that. But I don’t support the idea that government should pay, sponsor those going out for religious purposes. I don’t buy that idea. The money should be used to develop the country,” he told Accra-based Starr FM.