“I didn’t say we should pay Churches; I was just joking” – Bawumia

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer, has clarified his recent remarks about incentivizing churches, stating that his comments were meant as a joke. During a meeting with clergy in the North East Region, Bawumia emphasized that his statement, which suggested his administration might incentivize churches rather than tax them, was taken out of context.

Addressing the clergy, Bawumia highlighted the significant contributions of churches and faith-based institutions to the country, including the construction of schools, hospitals, and other essential facilities. He stressed that these contributions deserved recognition and support.

“Consider the number of hospitals and universities built by churches and faith-based organizations. They take care of numerous people daily. Imagine waking up tomorrow and all these institutions vanish. Ghana would collapse; it would be chaotic,” Bawumia said.

He further explained that his comment about paying churches for their contributions was made in jest. “At that point, I joked that perhaps we should pay churches for what they have done instead of taxing them. But I wasn’t serious about paying churches. I meant that we should incentivize them to do more.”

The remarks in question were made during a meeting with the clergy in the Bono East region on May 10. Bawumia reiterated his position against taxing churches, advocating instead for providing incentives to support their ongoing work.

“Understanding the immense work done by churches in terms of buildings, societal cohesion, universities, hospitals, and schools, it is clear that taxing them would be counterproductive. We should give churches incentives to support governmental efforts. I see churches as domestic development partners and want to incentivize them to do more,” Bawumia concluded.