Indonesian Honorary Consul urges people of Volta to remain calm in Nogokpo brouhaha
Mr Paskal A.B. Rois, the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Indonesia to Ghana, has called on the Chiefs and people of the Volta Region to remain calm and continue to be kind and peace-loving as part of their inherent attributes and cultural values.
Me Rois noted that as a son of the Volta Region himself, the people of the region and by extension, Ewes in Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Nigeria, are an epitome of peace, hardwork and kindness.
He made the call in a statement copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on the current brouhaha between Archbishop Dr Charles Agyinasare, General Overseer of the Perez Chapel International, and the elders of the Nogokpo Shrine and by extension, the people of the Volta Region.
Mr Rois said the development regarding the man of God had inflamed passions and subsequently attracted clarifications and apologies from him.
“As much as I understand the anger on what the earlier teachings have generated, I wish to humbly call on everyone to let sleeping dogs lie,” he emphasised.
He said it was worth noting that the revered man of God has married an Ewe woman from Keta for more than three decades now with whom they have even given two of their children Ewe names.
“Clearly, it means he cherishes and respects the good people of the Volta Region. He admitted his error and followed with an unqualified apology to the chiefs and people of Nogokpo and by extension all Voltaians and I think that should be enough to heal the wounds,” he intimated.
According to him, the name ‘Nogokpo’ is food for thought” for all and sundry.
The diplomat, who also has an interest in developing the country, used the occasion to appeal to all stakeholders including the government, non-government organisations (NGOs), civil society organizations (CSOs), philanthropists, and others to take advantage of the situation to pay the needed attention to the area to become one of the major tourist sites of the country.
“There are numerous good things at Nogokpo that could sell Ghana positively. Nogokpo community lacks certain basic facilities including potable water,” adding that all and sundry must use the opportunity to rally the needed support to the place.
He said Volta Region has fast become one of the tourist attraction destinations in the country with notable sites such as the Wli waterfalls, Mountain Afadza, Tafi Atome Monkey Sanctuary, and others.
He, therefore, called on government and all stakeholders to channel more resources to the attraction sites and other parts of the country, that could rake in the needed revenue under tourism for the country’s development just as being done in foreign countries.
Mr Rois was of the view that instead of ‘demonizing’ Nogokpo, the country should take advantage of the development to develop the area by building a robust Information and Communication Technology (ICT) centre to train and equip the children with basic skills in computing to prepare them for the global economy.
He called on all religious groups and institutions to use the opportunity to promote and effective collaboration and dialogue among the various religious practitioners, believers and sects to ensure peaceful co-existence and the development of the region, and by extension the country at large,” he added.
Source: GNA