Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Christian Tetteh Yohunu has urged religious leaders to use their influence to prevent religious tensions and violence, warning that any attack on Ghana’s peace ultimately threatens the future of the country’s children.

Speaking at an engagement with religious leaders at the National Police Headquarters on Friday, August 14, the IGP said religious leaders had a critical role to play in maintaining peace, particularly at a time when tensions could easily be inflamed by speech and actions.

He stressed that citizens must not take the law into their own hands when they believe an offence has been committed, insisting that such matters must be reported to the appropriate state institutions.

“No civilised society can survive when individuals take the law into their own hands. When a citizen believes a crime or an offence has been committed, the only righteous path is to report it to statutory authorities and trust the legal process,” he said.

Mr Yohunu also emphasised the need to protect both freedom of religion and freedom of expression, while making it clear that those freedoms do not justify violence or unlawful attacks against individuals.

“Every individual has a right to practice their faith without fear of violence,” he said.

According to the IGP, although speech that incites religious hatred is restricted under Article 20 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), alleged offences must still be dealt with through lawful processes.

“While speech that incites religious hatred is restricted under Article 20 of the ICCPR, due process and prohibition of extrajudicial harm, no suspect under state custody or in the public space may be subjected to torture, cruel treatment, or assault,” he said.

Mr Yohunu, therefore, appealed to Christian and Muslim leaders to use their platforms to calm tensions and discourage their congregations, particularly young people, from resorting to violence.

“Our revered clergy and the imams, our beloved chief imam, they listen to your sermons, read your social media posts, and follow your gestures,” he said.

He warned that the influence of religious leaders could either help prevent conflict or worsen tensions depending on the messages they put out.

“At this fragile moment, your words can either act as water upon an emerging fire or as petrol upon dying embers. I ask three key commitments from you today. Dedicate your Friday sermons in Islam and Sunday sermons strictly to messages of interfaith harmony, self-control, and the danger of religious conflict,” he urged.

He also asked religious leaders to remind their congregations of the wider consequences of violence, particularly for future generations.

“Remind your congregations that an attack on the peace of Ghana is an attack on the future of their own children,” Mr Yohunu said.

He further called for visible cooperation between Christian and Islamic leaders as a way of demonstrating unity to the public and countering attempts to turn religious differences into sources of conflict.

“ Let the public see Christians and Islamic leaders standing together, sharing meals, issuing joint statements, and walking through our communities hand-in-hand,” he said.

The IGP said such cooperation was particularly important in reaching young people, who could be influenced by messages portraying religious differences as grounds for division.

He urged religious leaders to teach their congregations that reporting alleged offences to the appropriate institutions, rather than seeking personal or communal retaliation, was consistent with both responsible citizenship and religious values.