The Christian Council of Ghana has called on the Tourism Ministry to consider expanding the scope of the Ga traditional festival, Homowo to give it a national character.

General Secretary of the Christian Council Rev. Dr. Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong says “Homowo is hooting at hunger and what it means is that we can solve our problem to the point that we can even ridicule the problem.

“I will be most grateful if the Ministry of Tourism and all the others will identify with the story behind  Homowo because we need to solve our problems to the extent that we can hoot at that problem”, he said.

The ban on drumming and noisemaking that precedes the annual celebrations has been a source of tension between Christians and Ga traditionalists in Accra each year.

But the Council will for the first time join the La, Osu, Ngleshie Alata and others to celebrate the Homowo festival this year.

Rev. Dr Frimpong says the objective of the celebrations which is to hoot at hunger must be broadened.

“We have modern day famine challenges –unemployment, illiteracy, poverty, corruption and all that – so we want to identify with the Homowo story that it is our story”.

He said the Homowo story was similar to what happened in the Bible, citing God’s provision of manna to the Israelites after they left Egypt.

He told Joy News the partnership should set the stage for an end to the violence that characterize the period of drumming and noisemaking ban.

As part of this year’s festival, there will be Homowo Bible quiz; Homowo what-do-you-know; Homowo praise and worship; Homowo prayer bazaar; Homowo crusade and Homowo thanksgiving church service to climax the celebrations in September.