No more New Year prophecies, pastors warned

The law enforcers said in a statement that the right of freedom of worship mus not encroach on the rights of others.

The order was put into force last year after rampant predictions of death and calamity that dictated the public, according to Ghana local news My Joy Online.

Millions of Christians gather in churches and crusades at the end of the year to listen for proclamations about the new year from their pastors.

These proclamations often range from positive affirmations to warnings of doom.

Although police has applauded religious groups for cooperating with the order and "adopting legally acceptable means for communicating prophecies", critics say that the order is a violation of the constitutional right for freedom of religion and it is therefore illegal.

Notably, Ghanaian lawyer Sammy Darko.

“It is not even up for debate or interpretation by the highest court of Ghana. No law in Ghana grants the police administration any powers to regulate prophecies in the country.

Religious freedom is more than the ‘freedom to worship’ at a synagogue, church, or mosque. It means people shouldn’t have to go against their core values and beliefs in order to conform to culture or government unless it violates a specific law,” he added.

Darko spoke to BBC saying that police recently lost a case against a pastor who had allegedly made a prophesy about a shooting of a celebrity musician. “This was significant,” he said.

Police said they had adopted 27 December as Prophecy Communication Compliance Day.

According to the statement, the day is a reminder to merge faith and law to ensure a safe environment that is free from harm that results from alarmist predictions of danger, harm and death.