Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has challenged religious bodies to continuously instill discipline into their congregants to eschew vices.

He believes this is the greatest remedy to all the vices that have eaten into the moral fibre of Ghanaians which is affecting personal behaviours and national development.

Speaking Thursday at the 86^th Annual National Convention of the Ahmadiyya Muslims Mission at Pomadze near Winneba in the Central Region, he charged religious leaders to do more by using religion in moulding society.

He said despite having lots of religious bodies across the country, “the question is whether religion has been successful in moulding society towards acceptable behaviours characterized by high levels of integrity and honesty or the converse".

He added that there is no doubt that majority of Ghanaians belong to one religion or the other, however, the role of religion in shaping and moulding the moral character of citizens has lately been questioned in terms of deliverables.

“Many believe that religion has somehow failed in sterilising the society due to the prevalence of high levels of corruption, stealing of public and private funds through inflation of contracts, under-invoicing and over-invoicing, tax avoidance and tax evasion, among others,” he said.

Themed on “Ensuring a disciplined society: The role of religion,” Dr Bawumia said getting society to act responsibly lies with the regime of training the mind or body to control behaviour in ways that positively serve society.

Dr Bawumiah also spoke about government’s commitment to building a robust economy to provide equal opportunity for all Ghanaians by rolling out some bold policy initiatives.

The initiatives require high levels of collaboration, commitment and discipline to be successful, he emphasised.

The Vice President spoke about some bills which have recently been signed into law by President Akufo-Addo.

They are the office of the Special Prosecutor Bill, Northern Development Authority Bill, Coastal Development Authority Bill, Middle Belt Development Authority Bill and Zongo Development Fund Bill.

“The signing of the Special Prosecutor Bill into law is a significant step in the president’s determination to fight corruption in the public life of our dear nation.

“Both past and present public officers will be under the microscope and held to account for their actions. This will help fight corruption and ensure prudent use of our resources for the benefit of all,” he said.

The government has indicated its determination to partner religious organizations in Ghana for shared growth.

In the 2018 budget presented to parliament, the government intends to partner Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) to deliver critical social services in education, health and water.

It will also support the provision of skills and entrepreneurial training for the youth and the establishment of commercial enterprises.