The President, Nana Akufo-Addo is urging churches and mosques to continue to strictly adhere to COVID-19 preventive protocols as the country navigates another surge in confirmed cases.
He said the maximum two-hour duration for their respective services and the practice of hand hygiene must be strictly complied with.
“To the revered leaders of our religious organizations i.e. our churches and mosques, I entreat you to enforce, to the letter, the protocols relating to attendance, i.e. the two-hour duration, one-meter social distancing, mask wearing, use of sanitizers and presence of Veronica buckets, liquid soap and rolls of tissue paper,” the President said.
The President made the statement in an address giving updates on the country’s fight against COVID-19 on Sunday, January 31, 2021.
The address saw the President announce the re-imposition of bans on concerts, public funerals, weddings and parties as a step to minimizing the fast rising cases of COVID-19 in the country.
According to him, the country was now recording on average 700 new infections daily a phenomenon he says could leave the country in a dire state if not tackled urgently.
Churches and mosques in the country have since May 2020 been conducting their services under some defined structures specified by the government as it lifted the restriction of a total ban on them.
At the time, churches and mosques were directed to hold services with a maximum of 100 congregants at a time for a maximum period of one hour.
They were also to ensure the mandatory wearing of face masks by each and every member of the religious organisations, while registration of names and contact numbers of all attendants of religious services were to be taken.
During services, social distancing were also advised alongside frequent handwashing, the use of hand sanitisers and fumigation of their premises.
Weeks later, these were further eased with the one-hour time limit increased to two hours.