Pastors spotted praying on Accra-Kumasi highway to avert accidents

Correspondence from the Eastern Region

Some men and women of God were on Wednesday afternoon spotted at Kyekyewere on the Accra-Kumasi Highway praying fervently to God to avert accidents on that road.

These men and women of God, said to be members of the Healing Mountain of God Ministry Church commuted along the Accra-Kumasi Highway and offered prayers also at Asuboi, Teacher Mante, Omenako, Apedwa, Mankrong, Asafo, Ayinasin and Bunso which have been considered as flashpoints for Ghana's road accident statistics.

Road accidents in recent times have been on the ascendency on those areas and as such, created some fear and panic for passengers and the country as a whole.

The men and women of God were captured praying on anointing oil and salt which they sprinkled on those portions of the Accra-Kumasi road.

In a short interview with the leader of the team who said he was called Prophet Isaac Oppong, Founder of the Healing Mountain of God Ministry, he said the spate of accidents on the road was due to evil spirit implant on that stretch and so God placed on their hearts to do the prayers on it to avert future fatal accidents.

"It is worrying looking at the number of accidents occurring in this stretch of the highway.

"These particular areas is very scary. An evil spirit has taken control of these parts of the road. That is why drivers from Kumasi, Togo driving all the way and end up shedding blood here."

"It is an evil force hidden under these areas that is why we have taken this step to pray to God to destroy the work of the devil on the road," Prophet Oppong alleged.

He advised drivers to stop reckless driving and to reduce overtaking and speeding on the highway.

Prophet Oppong also urged the drivers to put away thoughts of family problems when driving and rather focus on their driving so they can reach their destinations safely.

However, in an interview with the Eastern Regional Director of the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), Abdulai Bawa Ghamsah, he said, "accidents or crashes are not acts of God's."

"We are dealing with machines made by human beings with rules and regulations on how to use them. So if you default in following the manual of the manufacturer of that machine, obviously, you are going to get yourself involved in what we are seeing on our roads.

"The road engineer tells you how to use his roads, the vehicle manufacturer tells you how to drive his vehicles and the one who gave you the (driving) license told you there are rules and regulations on the road that you have to abide by to be safe.

"Yet the speed limit is 60kmh and we are going 120kmh. How will this be an act of the gods?" Mr Ghamsah postulated.

The Eastern Regional NRSA Director urged church leaders to also spend time using their pulpits to admonish their members to obey traffic regulations and be part of driving.

"They should not just sit in the buses watching movies and laughing, rather, they should concentrate on what the driver is doing.

"Is the driver on a mobile phone? Is the driver over speeding? Is the driver doing very dangerous overtaking? All these things they should tell their congregation.

"They should tell their members that it doe not take only the driver to drive (them) safely to their destinations. They are part of it," he stressed.