The Anambra State Government wishes to address the misconstrued reports surrounding Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo’s recent encounter with an itinerant preacher at Onitsha Market, where the Governor’s remarks on noise pollution are now being adversely interpreted as a ban on evangelism. Although the Governor’s focus was on the noise pollution, which has been banned by an extant law on public health, propagators of fake news have gone to town to misconstrue the Governor’s remark as a ban on evangelism.
While making the clarification on Tuesday, the Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor stated that Governor Soludo, while addressing the noise polluters, drew their attention to the Public Health Law 2006, which prohibits noise pollution and preaching in inappropriate places like markets using loudspeakers. The governor advised preachers to conduct their activities in churches or designated areas where people can gather and listen to the word without disrupting others’ activities.
According to Mefor, the issue at hand is noise pollution, not evangelism. “Noise pollution” is punishable under *Sections 8(1,4b) and 9(1,2) of the Public Health Laws of Anambra State, 2006. As a matter of precedence, a magistrate court in Nnewi made this law actionable against a church in 2019 (link is attached herewith: https://search.app/xBiq2v7wDBUwvTmE8).
The public is therefore advised to disregard any claims suggesting Governor Soludo has banned evangelism or public preaching in Anambra State. Instead, we urge citizens to adhere to the Public Health Law and respect other people’s rights to a conducive environment.
