{"id":104102,"date":"2025-11-25T19:06:31","date_gmt":"2025-11-25T19:06:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=104102"},"modified":"2025-11-25T19:06:31","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T19:06:31","slug":"aid-is-not-ownership-christian-council-and-catholic-bishops-defy-calls-to-secularise-mission-schools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=104102","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Aid is not ownership\u2019: Christian Council and Catholic Bishops defy calls to \u2018secularise\u2019 mission schools"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>3 Minute, 57 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>
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In a unified declaration issued on Tuesday, November 25, 2025, the Ghana Catholic Bishops\u2019 Conference (GCBC) and the Christian Council of Ghana (CCG) have drawn a definitive line in the sand regarding the religious administration of mission schools.<\/p>\n

Amidst the recurring national debate\u2014sparked by incidents such as the Wesley Girls\u2019 High School fasting controversy\u2014regarding the rights of Muslim students to fully practice their faith in Christian institutions, the leadership of the Christian community has pushed back. <\/p>\n

They argue that compelling mission schools to accommodate non-Christian religious practices is an infringement on the constitutional rights of the church and a threat to the discipline that defines these top-tier institutions.<\/p>\n

A Partnership, Not a Takeover<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the heart of the joint statement, signed by Rt. Rev. Dr. Bliss Divine Agbeko (Chair, CCG) and Most Rev. Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi (President, GCBC), is a rejection of the notion that government funding equates to state control.<\/p>\n

While the State pays teacher salaries and regulates the curriculum, the church leaders argue that this financial assistance does not transfer ownership or the right to alter the school\u2019s \u201ccore religious character\u201d.<\/p>\n

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\u201cOur historical and proprietorship claim forms the cornerstone of our argument,\u201d the statement reads. \u201cChristian mission schools were not created by the state\u2026 When the government began assisting us, it joined an already functioning system. State support, therefore, is a partnership, not a takeover.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The statement firmly clarifies that financial aid \u201cmust not be mistaken for state ownership, nor does it grant any party\u2014governmental or religious\u2014the authority to redefine the character of the institutions we established.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Constitutional Argument: Institutions Have Rights Too<\/strong><\/p>\n

Addressing the legal dimension, the Bishops and the Council presented a nuanced interpretation of the 1992 Constitution. While acknowledging individual religious freedom, they argued that institutions and religious communities also possess the Right to Freedom of Association.<\/p>\n

The statement contends that forcing Christian schools to dilute their identity to accommodate other faiths is, in itself, a violation of the Church\u2019s liberty.<\/p>\n

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\u201cAs Christian communities, we have the constitutional right to operate schools that express our faith. Expecting us to suppress the Christian identity of our schools to accommodate every religious group would infringe upon this freedom,\u201d the leaders asserted.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

They emphasised that the maintenance of a specific religious character is \u201cessential, not incidental\u201d to their operation and is fully protected under the law.<\/p>\n

Practical Challenges and \u201cFractured\u201d Discipline<\/strong><\/p>\n

Beyond the legal arguments, the statement highlighted the administrative chaos that would ensue if mission schools were forced to accommodate the specific obligations of multiple religions, such as Islamic prayer schedules or dietary restrictions during fasting.<\/p>\n

The Council and Conference listed several \u201cpractical challenges\u201d that they claim are not merely hypothetical:<\/p>\n