The Police in Rwanda have arrested six church leaders for attempting to defy a government order that requires churches to comply with building regulations and noise pollution.
The government of Rwanda last month closed down a total of 714 churches in different parts of the country’s capital Kigali for failure to meet minimum standards for their operations.
New Times reported that the places of worship for these churches were found to lack basic infrastructure, fell short of hygiene, safety standards and had issues related to their legal status.
Some churches were also closed for not having inadequate parking lots and operating from tents.
The pastors that have been arrested including Bishop Innocent Rugagi, one of the country’s famous pastors leading the Redeemed Gospel Church, are reported to have criticized the government’s action.
President Paul Kagame has publicly criticized what he called a huge number of illegal churches in the country and questioned whether these churches, bring any worthy benefit to the people while describing them as a security threat.
Many African countries have struggled to contain the activities of churches that continue to fast spread across their cities.
Source: Africafeeds.com
