The Government of Ghana has suspended the implementation of a regulation restricting preaching and hawking inside moving public and commercial vehicles following public criticism and concerns over its implications for religious expression.
The decision follows objections from religious leaders and other stakeholders to Regulation 141 of the Road Traffic Regulations, 2026 (L.I. 2519), which classifies preaching and hawking in moving vehicles as a public nuisance.
The suspension leaves questions about the future of the provision unanswered, with the government yet to issue a public statement outlining the details of the decision or indicating whether the regulation will be amended or withdrawn.
Under the regulation, offenders face a fine of between GH¢120 and GH¢600, imprisonment for up to eight months, or both.
The restriction has generated debate over religious freedom and the role of evangelism in Ghana’s public transport system, where preaching inside commercial buses, popularly known as tro-tros, is common.
The Member of Parliament for Assin South, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, was among those who publicly challenged the measure, appealing to President John Dramani Mahama to abandon the restriction.
Rev. Ntim Fordjour, who is also a pastor, said he had been preaching on commercial buses since around 2007 and questioned why the practice should expose pastors and evangelists to imprisonment.
“Mr President, please order them to abandon this bogus regulation which seeks to jail innocent Pastors and Evangelists – simply for preaching in buses,” he said in a social media post.
Another prominent critic, the Head Pastor of Holy Hill Chapel of the Assemblies of God, Rev. Dr Kwadwo Boateng Bempah, declared that the church would not be silenced by the restriction.
“Wherever human beings gather, we will preach. Wherever human beings gather, the word must go forth,” he said, arguing that religious evangelism should not be restricted in public spaces.
The regulation has also raised questions about the classification of preaching as a nuisance and whether the penalties are proportionate to the conduct being restricted.
However, the provision is not entirely new. Regulation 116 of the earlier Road Traffic Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2180), also prohibited preaching and hawking in public or commercial vehicles while in motion.
The key change under L.I. 2519 is the tougher punishment, with the revised rules providing for a prison term of up to eight months.
