Bible Society Worried Over Level Of Corruption In Ghana

The General Secretary of the Bible Society of Ghana has expressed disappointment over the rate at which corruption, indiscipline, and lawlessness are permeating the Ghanaian society, even though 68% of her population is presumed to be Christian. Reverend Erasmus Odonkor, who was addressing the media in Accra yesterday, indicated that he finds it disheartening that a nation such as Ghana had failed to live according to the principles of the Bible. He said the use of biblical principles is key to the nationwide effort to reduce corruption, lawlessness, and other vices which had contributed hugely to the level of poverty in the country. To help deal with the canker, he said the African Biblical Leadership Initiative (ABLI), on behalf of the Bible Society of Ghana, will be organising a three-day conference dubbed �The Missing Factor in Leadership�. The conference, he said, would aim at sensitising the government and the people, through the principles of the Bible. The General Secretary disclosed that the discussion of the three-day conference will be centered on corruption, indiscipline, lawlessness and bribery. �Issues such as empowering the youth leadership, transforming leadership in the church and state, the place of the word of God in national and local life, integrity of business in the public square, and the woman�s place in church, among others, will be discussed. According to him, the organisation has the belief that economic development must be based on strong ethical and moral foundations, and for that reason, there will also be a discussion on how people in leadership, including those in government, can use biblical principles to guide their governance processes. He mentioned that they aimed to empower African leaders, by discussing the Bible�s emphasis on integrity, compassion and justice in leadership, with the belief that this will lead to the positive transformation of the nation. The General Secretary further told the journalists that the hope of the organisation is to target people, not only in government, but also in the churches, industry, civil society, and the larger community. �They expect that at the end of the forum, there would be broad principles of Christian leadership, which many can ascribe to, especially as 68% of Ghanaians claim they are Christians. Furthermore, we hope to develop practical ways of ensuring that the principles, so identified, are shared with the people of Africa, especially Ghanaians,� Reverend Odonkor emphasised.