Regional News of Thursday, 14 April 2005

Source: GNA

Enforce law banning peddling and preaching on vehicles

Apam (C/R), April 14, GNA - The Ghana Private Road Transport Union and other transport organisations have been urged to enforce the law prohibiting the peddling of drugs and preaching on commercial vehicles. Mr Stephen Agyei-Yeboah, a Field Officer of the Gomoa District Directorate of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), who made the appeal in an interview with the GNA at Apam on Tuesday, said the law, which was in force some years ago had been relaxed creating a lot of inconvenience to travellers especially on big commercial buses.

He said besides causing nuisance to drivers and many uninterested passengers, countless peddlers of herbal and other medicines and concoctions managed to convince unsuspecting persons with fantastic claims to the numerous ailments each single product could cure. Mr Agyei-Yeboah noted that the activities of such peddlers had made many people uninterested in traditional medicine and urged various associations of traditional medicine practitioners to help to arrest the situation.

He also expressed concern about the practice of some "self-styled pastors" who jumped onto moving commercial vehicles and coaches to preach to passengers.

Mr Agyei-Yeboah urged transport associations to restrain such persons from engaging in their activities at the lorry parks as the practice was gradually becoming a way of earning a daily income. Mr Agyei-Yeboah appealed to the Christian Council and other Christian organisations to call such "daily income earning pastors" to order as many claimed to be members of the various Christian churches. 14 April 05