Assin South Member of Parliament John Ntim Fordjour has appealed to President John Dramani Mahama to abandon regulations restricting preaching in moving commercial vehicles.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) lawmaker, who is also the Senior Pastor of Victory Bible Church International’s Higher Heights Sanctuary in East Legon, criticised the enforcement of the Road Traffic Regulations, 2026 (L.I. 2519), which prohibit preaching and hawking on public service vehicles while in motion.
Rev. Ntim Fordjour argued that the restriction unfairly targets religious activities and called on the President to intervene to prevent pastors and evangelists from facing criminal sanctions for preaching on commercial buses.
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He warned that the measure could expose pastors and evangelists to imprisonment for simply sharing their faith.
In a social media post, he urged President Mahama to direct the relevant authorities to withdraw the regulation.
“Mr President, please order them to abandon this bogus regulation which seeks to jail innocent Pastors and Evangelists – simply for preaching in buses,” he wrote.
The Assin South MP also questioned whether the regulation reflected the President’s position or had been introduced by members of his government without his approval.
“Or is this also part of the unpopular policies your Ministers are pushing without your approval? Who is really in charge in this govt?” he asked.
Rev. Ntim Fordjour said preaching on commercial buses had been part of his evangelism activities for nearly two decades.
He explained that he began preaching on commercial vehicles around 2007 while evangelising in Tarkwa, questioning why the practice is now being treated as a nuisance under the new regulations.
The lawmaker maintained that he would continue preaching in public spaces despite the restrictions, signalling his opposition to the enforcement of the new rules.
The Road Traffic Regulations, 2026 (L.I. 2519), prohibit preaching and hawking on public service vehicles while they are in motion.
Under the provisions cited in reports on the regulation, offenders face a fine of between 10 and 50 penalty units, imprisonment for up to eight months, or both.
The restrictions have raised questions about how authorities will enforce the rules and how they will affect religious groups that use public transport as an avenue for evangelism.