With Lower Cases of COVID-19 in Togo, Bishops Express Gratitude, Solidarity, Caution

The Bishops who held their second Ordinary Plenary Assembly for the year 2019-2020 at the Secretariat of their conference in Lomé encouraged the Government and the health authorities to continue their efforts to bring the pandemic under control as soon as possible.

During their four-day meeting, the Catholic Church leaders deliberated about the February general elections and the situation of security in the West African nation.

Characterized with irregularities, the February 22 general elections “plunged Togo into a predictable movement of disputes as soon as the results were announced,” the Bishops recall.

“Without a serious reform of the electoral framework for free, transparent, credible and peaceful elections, democracy cannot really flourish in Togo,” the members of CET caution and add, “As long as socio-political life is dominated by the army, as long as the legislative and judicial branches are not truly independent, as long as corruption and impunity continue to flourish in the land of our forefathers, tensions will not really end.”

They express their concerns about insecurity in the country and make particular reference to “the assassinations of the past few months,” which they say “sound the alarm about the seriousness of the situation. No social category seems to be spared.”

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Following the disputed presidential election that saw the re-election of the incumbent, President Faure Gnassingbe, Togo has been experiencing insecurity resulting in loss of lives.

Early May, the commander of the 1^st Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR), Colonel Bitala Madjoulba was found dead in his office. The local media has reported deaths, some blamed on government security agencies.

The Bishops condemn “this cynical and opaque way of proceeding by playing with what is most sacred to man: life” and call for an immediate end to these crimes.

They ask that the “investigations being carried out be brought to a successful conclusion and that the perpetrators and those who commissioned them be arrested, tried and punished in accordance with the laws in force.”

“Such crimes gravely offend the Creator and Master of all life,” the Church leaders bemoan and express their closeness and compassion to the victims of all forms of violence and injustice in the West African nation.

Invoking God’s intervention for lasting peace in Togo, the Bishop invite the faithful “to pray for priests, so that, following the example of the Good Shepherd, they may give themselves entirely to the service of the people of God.”

Jude Atemanke is a Cameroonian journalist with a passion for Catholic Church communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea in Cameroon. Currently, Jude serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.