General News of Monday, 29 August 2016

Source: peacefmonline.com

Remove your Cassock and be a Politician - Twum Boafo to Osei-Bonsu

President of the Catholic Bishops Conference, Most Rev. Joseph Osei-Bonsu President of the Catholic Bishops Conference, Most Rev. Joseph Osei-Bonsu

Chief Executive of the Ghana Free Zones Board, Kojo Twum Boafo has pilloried the Head of the Catholic Bishops' Conference, Bishop Osei-Bonsu, for dabbling in the affairs of President John Dramani Mahama.

Speaking on Radio Gold’s 'Alhaji and Alhaji', Kojo Twum Boafo lambasted Bishop Osei Bonsu who he claims has been castigating the President without a cause.

He recounted the number of times that the Bishop has involved in mainstream politics in the country, accusing him of calling the President and his government names.

It could be recalled that Bishop Osei-Bonsu commenting on the transfer of the Gitmo 2 detainees to Ghana told President John Mahama to balance compassion with common sense.

He is reported to have also disagreed with President Mahama's pardon of the Montie trio.

But it appears the position of the Bishop on national issues has not sunk down well with the Chief Executive of the Ghana Free Zones Board as he wants Bishop Osei Bonsu to remove his priestly garment and enter into politics as a politician.

To him, the Bishop has disgraced himself and does not behold himself as a true Catholic leader.

“Nobody knows you in your personal capacity. People know you because you’re a Bishop . . . With Catholics, right; you can go and confess our sins to a Priest. And he is supposed to pray for you and that’s the end of the story. You’re using that Priest as a medium between you and God. And the whole of our Christian faith is based on restitution and forgiveness of sin.

“But this Pastor who’s politics are more important than his pastoral or his priestly calling damns the President for exercising mercy and yet he will go to church and ask his congregants to sing ‘Rescue the perishing. Care for the dying. Jesus is merciful. Jesus will save. Will do that on a weekly basis; Shame on you!”

Kojo Twum Boafo further advised Pastors in the country who make similar comments on national issues to "remove the cassock and get into the political arena, they should come. We’re waiting for them. They should come. We’re waiting for them."

He dared to disclose the identities of some Pastors who he claims have been beating their wives and others who have turned themselves to "wife snatchers" instead of men of God.

"If you want to become a politician, remove the cassock and come so that those of you who are wife beaters; we can call you out. Those of you who have been beating your wives, we’ll call you out. Those of you who have been chasing people’s wives, we’ll call you out. That is the arena of politics but don’t hide behind the cassock and come and tell us what is not in the bible," he stated.