In his 14th address to the nation, President Akuffo Addo announced the ease in restrictions in places of worship beginning August 1.
According to Akuffo Addo, the restrictions on the number worshippers in places of worship will be lifted, however, worship hours will only be extended by an additional hour.
“I have sorely missed going to Church, as I am sure many others have. I am, therefore, very happy to announce that, in consultation with our Church leaders, from 1st August, 2020, the restrictions on the number of congregants worshipping at a time in Church will be lifted, with the length of worship extended from one (1) to two (2) hours per service,” he said.
Wear masks and adhere to social distancing protocols
Though the initial one hundred (100) worshippers per service will be lifted from August 1, the wearing of masks and strict adherence to social distancing protocols must be followed.
Akuffo Addo expressed himself clearly when he says, “Church leaders, who are desirous of implementing this enhanced easing directive, must ensure that congregants wear face masks at all times, and the one (1) metre social distancing rule is scrupulously applied. These same guidelines apply to worship in our Mosques.”
He further asked religious leaders to focus on open air ventilation than air conditioners as enclosed spaces cause an easy spread of the virus.
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According to Akuffo Addo the ease in restrictions comes as a result of “the reality of the progress of the virus in our country, the measures we have taken to cope better, and the regular consultations with relevant stakeholders, that informed Government’s decision, over a month ago, to embark on a strategic, controlled, progressive, safe easing of restrictions to get our lives and economy back to normal.”
As “Phase Two” of easing restrictions takes effect, more now than ever, we require all Ghanaians to adhere to safety and social distancing guidelines in order to control and limit the spread of the virus.
