14 May 2001
Accra — Christ Apostolic Church, the oldest and possibly the biggest Pentecostal church and another Charismatic church, El-Shaddai, yesterday became the first victims of the recurring problem of the ban on drumming by traditional groups in Accra.
Militant youth stormed the CAC church building while service was going on and resorted to smashing up the place, destroying glass windows in the just re-habilitated multi million cedi Osu headquarters branch of the church.
Eyewitness accounts noted the absence of enthusiasm from policemen at the site, already under pressure for their role in the ill-fated stadium disaster. They were alleged to have failed to restrain the youth from entering the church premises.
Dramatically, the assailants met with fierce resistance from church members who refused to lie down and be trampled on. They returned the violent confrontation with equal zeal and a number of people sustained injuries.
The General Secretary of the church Rev. Annor-Yeboah later appealed for a long lasting solution to what has now become an annual ritual of tensions and anxieties over the right to worship in peace in Accra.
Rev. Sam Korankye Ankrah, Overseer of the International Bible Worship Centre (IBWC) had earlier cautioned that the authorities should be particularly vigilant and proactive this month since the period of agitation for ban on 'noisemaking' (drumming and singing) had dawned again.
He appealed to The Chronicle to alert the law enforcement agencies and to impress upon the authorities that it was imperative that a lasting resolution to the problem should be finally and firmly nailed. Some of the Christian groups are growing restless and the mood to adopt a more militant resistance stance is gaining ground and they constitute a huge force with superior numerical advantage.
The CAC resistance may be a signal to other churches to stand up to what they may consider the bullying ways of the traditionalists, but pressure on the authorities may be greater. Last year's inquiries over similar disturbances when Lighthouse Church International was attacked yielded no known resolution.
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