Rivers to regulate church activities
From RoseAnn Chikereuba, Port Harcourt

TO check noise pollution, the Rivers State Government has said that from April this year, it would begin to regulate the activities of churches in the state.




The state government said the decision was aimed at improving the environment. It lamented that indiscriminate flying of banners, posters and horn- speakers by churches constituted noise pollution.

Briefing journalists after a close door meeting with some religious leaders and Local Council Chairmen in Le Meridien Hotel, Port Harcourt yesterday, the Commissioner for Environment, Mr. Kingsley Chinda said the parley was held to look at issues that bordered on range from indiscriminate activities of some churches in the state which according to him, discoloured the environment.

He explained that the state government and the church leaders had agreed on ways to ameliorate the situation. "The hanging of horn -speakers outside the church will be stopped completely, there will be no more indiscriminate flying of banners and posters, conditions would be given for vigil while crusades would be considered only with appropriate regulations and due process"

The commissioner announced that three months grace has been given to all churches in the state to adjust themselves and adhere to the rules and warned that as from April 2009, there would be strict enforcement of the law.

He said: "We know that having agreed within ourselves, it will not really be enforcement but we hope that the churches will corporate with the government to make Rivers State a better place; we have given three months grace because we believe the period is sufficient to pass the messages across to he people all over the out state".

He added, "We are not banning crusades but appropriate regulations would be followed, whenever we need to carry out a religious carnival. There is need to follow due process to ensure we get the necessary permit. We should not outlaw completely, we should not disturb our neighborhood in the course of serving God. Moslems may be affected as well".

On his part, the Chairman of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Port Harcourt , Eugene Ogu said the government was determined to implement the policy so as to bring decency in the state. He urged the churches to cooperate and support the government.

His words: " We all travel abroad and we appreciate the decency that we see there even the bible says let all things be done with decency .So no body should contravene the law; we have seen the government's seriousness so let us cooperate and support him".

http://odili.net/news/source/2009/jan/24/18.html

People can now sleep peacefully at night.

Very welcome development.

The way most of these pentecostal preachers use noise to intimidate people into listening to their sermon in Nigeria is alarming. I hope they attach jail sentence to defaulters.

Good decision. After all, the harder they shout preach the more corruption we witness in the society.

Good decision. After all, the harder they shout preach the more corruption we witness in the society.

Churches are not responsible for the corruption in the society. If anything, they help to curtail it.

my friend asked me,"why do nigerians love God so much?" i responded, because we can hide all our shortcomings and attrocitieswe carry out under his name and he'll still love us back

Churches are not responsible for the corruption in the society. If anything, they help to curtail it.

Ok, it is the people in the church/mosque that are corrupt .

No more morning criers in PH?

Aaaaaaaaagh, finally! I went to secondary in PH. believe me, the noise no be joke. you dont have to live close to a church or mosque to feel the pain and discomfort.

this is definitely a step in the right direction.

they also need to ban people from preaching/shouting very early in the morning.

Damn man, can I get some sleep?

i am awaiting the reactions of the religious bodies

a very welcome development

Will they keep the rules?

Weytin go happen to my alarm clock

good news

JosBoy4Lif:

Weytin go happen to my alarm clock

hahaahahahahahhahahaahhha. o boy, you funny

Churches/mosques are too many that is why their prayers are not effective. I think they should undergo re-capitalisation re-consolidation like our banks .

Churches don so far. Government will not touch a mosque with a pole but when its a church because christians are so docile every politician will bush them around.

Churches don so far. Government will not touch a mosque with a pole but when its a church because christians are so docile every politician will push them around.

Churches don so far. Government will not touch a mosque with a pole but when its a church because christians are so docile every politician will push them around.

Christians are not docile rather they are peace loving and they believe their God will fight for them and not their dagger.

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earTHMama:

Christians are not docile rather they are peace loving and they believe their God will fight for them and not their dagger.

Thank you earTHMama and please they should be reminded of the spurious and distubing blaring of siren in the town ship that is environmental friendly according to them. Since they want to learn from so-called advanced countries: how often did they hear a siren when they went to those countries, except for emergency trucks like fire and ambulances?

To be honest the rate or frequency of these sirens is disturbing, infact an average of about four sirens are blaring within and around the city almost every 30mins - I stand to be corrected here - from town to Forces Avenue to Eastern by-pass to trans-Amadi to Oluobasanjo road to Ekwere road to Aba road to etc, etc

To be honest the rate or frequency of these sirens is disturbing, infact an average of about four sirens are blaring within and around the city almost every 30mins - I stand to be corrected here - from town to Forces Avenue to Eastern by-pass to trans-Amadi to Oluobasanjo road to Ekwere road to Aba road to etc, etc

roflmao

me i no w8 4 govt sef, i don go protest dt 12md9t vigil noise in my neighborhood. now they dsconnect d external speakers. wia dem sense b4?