Attach seriousness to COVID-19 fight — Catholic Bishops

The Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference (GCBC) has asked the people to attach more seriousness to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

It said developments so far indicated that many people were not concerned about the spread of the virus and the damage it was causing in the country.

It mentioned, for instance, the high level of disregard for the observance of COVID-19 protocols at the recently held New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary primaries, the ongoing voters registration exercise, last Monday’s event to announce the running mate of the flag bearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) at the party’s headquarters in Accra and some other public gatherings, saying scenes at those programmes left much to be desired.

Statement

A statement dated July 7, 2020 and signed by the President of the GCBC, the Most Rev. Philip Naameh, added: “While we focus our concerns on national events that attract crowds of people, we also appeal to all to accept the reality of COVID-19 and thus modify their behaviours to conform to the safety guidelines.”

Making reference to the latest figures on the disease from the Ghana Health Service, it noted the rising spate of the cases and said as much as the bishops acknowledged that the recovery rate was impressive, the increase in the positive case count was not good news for the country, adding: “The same can be said about the mortality rate, which is also on the increase.”

Registration exercise

While encouraging all qualified Ghanaians to take part in the voters registration exercise, the statement asked the people to take hold of their personal responsibilities by observing all the necessary health protocols, especially social distancing and the wearing of nose masks, during the registration exercise and at all social and public gatherings.

It also welcomed the queue management system introduced by the Electoral Commission (EC) in the registration exercise.

“Under the queue management system, the first 150 applicants who arrive at registration centres will be provided with numbered chits. The first half of this number will be served from morning to early afternoon.

“The second half will be asked to leave the centres and return in the afternoon when the registration process for the first batch has been completed. They will then be served,” it said.

 “This, in our view, is a good measure to deal with overcrowding at the registration centres,” it added.

The statement further appealed to the government to assist the EC with increased security to ensure strict adherence to the protocols.