President John Dramani Mahama has clarified that Ghana’s road traffic regulations do not prohibit religious preaching in public and commercial vehicles outright, but require preachers to stop once a vehicle begins moving.
Speaking during his Resetting Ghana Tour of the Ahafo Region, the President said preachers could enter buses and preach while they were stationed at terminals, but must stop when the vehicles set off.
He explained that the restriction was intended to protect the safety of passengers and drivers, as preaching or selling goods inside a moving vehicle could distract drivers and expose preachers and passengers to injury if the vehicle braked suddenly.
President Mahama stressed that the prohibition was not new, noting that similar restrictions existed under the Road Traffic Regulations, 2012, and had been retained in the Road Traffic Regulations, 2026 (L.I. 2519).
Under Regulation 141 of the new instrument, preaching and hawking in moving public or commercial vehicles are prohibited. The provision prescribes a fine of 10 to 50 penalty units, imprisonment for up to eight months, or both.