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President of the National Prophetic and Charismatic Council, Archbishop-elect Elisha Salifu Amoako has advised his fellow prophets to abide by the directives of the Inspector-General of Police, Dr George Akuffo Dampare, on prophecies that can cause fear and panic.

Archbishop-elect Salifu Amoako was concerned about the fact that prophets could be in danger should they flout the directives of the Inspector General.

The Police, in a statement weeks ago, reminded religious groups that their rights to religion, freedom of worship and free speech were subject to respect for the rights and freedoms of others according to the law of the country.

The Police said it was a crime for a person to publish or reproduce a statement, rumour or report, which was likely to cause fear and alarm to the public or to disturb the public peace without any evidence to prove that the statement, rumour or report was true.

It noted in a press statement that over the years, communications of prophecies of harm, danger and death by some religious leaders had created tension and panic in the Ghanaian society and put the lives of many people in fear and danger and that anybody found guilty under these laws could be liable to a prison term up to five years.

“We, therefore, wish to caution all Ghanaians, especially religious groups and leaders to be measured in their utterances, especially how they communicate prophecies which may injure the right of others and the public interest."

Archbishop-elect Salifu Amoako in response told a team of journalists at his office that the National Prophetic and Charismatic Council was not happy with the caveat issued by the IGP and his team. To him, it did not only undermine the prophetic ministry but also strived to intimidate the prophets in the country from performing their mandate.

He insisted that prophecies were not planned but rather a spiritual engagement where God revealed His intentions about individuals and nations to the prophets who had the mandate to reveal them according to God’s instructions.

He added that God in some instances could instruct prophets to speak about a pending danger that could befall the nation but the directive of the Ghana Police Service regarding prophecies was an attempt to set a boundary for the prophetic office.

He believed that the prophetic ministry through which God had been revealing His mindset and also exposing the evil plot of the devil about people and nations was under attack by some people who were into different ministries.

He envisaged that the directive of the Inspector General Police even though was by the laws of the country, would at the same time limit the prophetic ministry and also box it to operate in a specific direction, contrary to how God operates.

Archbishop-elect Salifu Amoako was of the view that the Inspector General of Police could have engaged the leadership of the prophetic ministry in a dialogue to better appreciate their ministry before issuing the communique which had created confusion in the country.

He, however, wished the directive of the Inspector General of Police was withdrawn as it was rather an attack on God and not the prophets alone.

Additionally, he feared that if the directive of the Inspector General of Police was encouraged, it would gradually eat into other areas of the ministry to even control the way people should pray in their churches.

He, therefore, cautioned his fellow prophets to apply wisdom in their prophecies to avoid incarceration.