EFFICIENT CREDIT UNIONS CONTRIBUTE TO DEVELOPMENT (PAGE 43, JUNE 28, 2010)

THE Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Wenchi in the Brong Ahafo Region, Mr Yaw Osei Agyei has stated that efficient credit unions and loans and savings schemes in the various parts of the country have transformed the lives of many people.
He also noted with satisfaction that some religious bodies had set up schools at all levels, which were massive contributions towards the growth of the economy and a relief to the government.
“‘In Ghana today, our churches have gone into education, trading, transport, medicine and all sorts of physical development issues, that make them assume total development of the human being,” he stated.
The MCE made the observation when he addressed the seventh Annual Synod of the Wenchi Diocese of the Methodist Church of Ghana, on the theme ‘‘Oneness in Diversity’’.
In the Wenchi town itself, Mr Agyei noted that the Methodist Church was rubbing shoulders with the Municipal Assembly and for that matter the government, saying, ‘‘We cannot talk about our health without the mention of the famous Wenchi Methodist Church”.
Mr Agyei explained that the church sought the spiritual uplift or welfare of the person, while the state concerned itself with the physical development of the people, adding however that recent developments had shifted those positions, with the church having taken upon itself some gigantic physical development of the person, while the state had embarked on programmes to dignify the individual.
He further pointed out that the state had crossed into the spiritual realm by ensuring that Ghanaians had the peace of mind to go about their normal duties without any fear whatsoever, adding that the government had provided a sound security for the people which he said had ensured healthy minds in healthy bodies.
The government, the MCE said, had ensured that democracy and the rule of law thrived in the country, stressing ‘‘Ghanaians are happier today and are living and walking about peacefully’’.
Mr Agyei said in spite of the numerous achievements of the church and state, there were still more to be done, since more people continued to engage in crimes and other immoral activities, and therefore, used the occasion to advise both Christians and Moslems not to relent in their efforts but to pray for God’s divine intervention.
The Rt Rev. Sampson Yamoah spoke against division in the church and implored the congregation to remain one in Christ, pointing out that, ‘‘Oneness in diversity underscores the acknowledgement and maintenance of individual uniqueness or difference”.