Accra, (Greater Accra) 4 Jan. '99,

The Accra branch of the African Renaissance Mission (Afrikania) is to benefit from a shrine where members could communicate with God, the divinities and ancestors. Nana Akuoko Sarpong, chairman of the National Commission on Culture who announced this at a special Africania New Year service, said this would allow members to commune with higher spirits in surroundings that befit divine presence. Nana Akuoko Sarpong noted that with the onslaught of foreign religions and cultural influences all over the country, members of Afrikania have a big task in re-asserting the truth about African religion. He described as "misguided", traditional rulers and people who look down on traditional practices after undergoing western education and urged Afrikania members not to waver, saying that traditional religion guided their ancestors long before the advent of any other religion in Africa. Osofo Kofi Ameve, the leader, decried the greed and selfishness that have characterised the African of today whom, he said, was full of love and brotherliness before the introduction foreign cultures. Osofo Ameve appealed to Africans to desist from using derogatory expressions to describe their religion, saying such expressions were given by foreigners who wanted the African to abandon his religion and embrace theirs. Dr Nii Armah Josiah-Aryeh, a lecturer at the Faculty of Law, University of Ghana, said the black man is not respected internationally because he is regarded as someone without an indigenous religion. He said "it is neither the chatter of politicians nor the inculcation of moral values that will turn back the tide; the situation rather calls for the creation of a systematic and coherent doctrine for Ghanaians and Africans in the diaspora". The service was attended by traditional rulers from the Greater Accra and Volta regions, as well as divine priests and priestesses from the Ga District. GRi