SIX FOUNDATION GATE CHAPEL MEMBERS DIE IN CAR CRASH (PAGE 23)

SIX members of the Fountain Gate Chapel, including two daughters of the Head Pastor of the church, Rev. Eastwood Anaba, died in a road crash at Kukuobila near Walewale in the West Mamprusi District of the Northern Region last Thursday.
The elder of the two children of the head pastor who died in the accident, Amanda Anaba, is a 20-year old Pharmacy student at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi while her younger sister, Audrey, is a 15-year-old student of the Tema Senior High School.
They are two of Reverend Anaba’s four children. The other two are males.
The other deceased included a Pastor of a branch of the Church in the Brong Ahafo Region and another female member of the church from Accra.
The deceased were picked from the Tamale Airport for the national headquarters of the church at Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region for an Easter Convention.
According to the Tamale Police, on reaching a spot around Kukuobila, a rear tyre of the vehicle burst resulting in the vehicle somersaulting a number of times before finally hitting a tree.
News of the death of the members of the church was met with grief and sorrow by the entire congregation who had converged at Bolgatanga for the annual International Extra Oil Conference, reports Benjamin Xorman Glover.
When the Daily Graphic arrived at the conference venue, at about 6 p.m., some grieving members had gathered in small groups discussing the accident.
Later, Pastor Anaba urged the congregation to remain steadfast in the Lord.
Exhuding great courage and confidence, Pastor Anaba for nearly 30 minutes, exhorted the congregation to remain prayerful and explained that he saw the tragedy as a challenge and a test of his faith.
He explained that the tragedy that had befallen the church would not shift its focus from doing God’s work, adding that “the devil has committed a terrible mistake”.
Pastor Anaba, who has stepped down as the Chairman of the International Presbytery of the Church after 20 years in that capacity declared that the convention would continue according to plan and “nothing is going to disrupt our programme”
“After all, when it happens to others, who I call my children because they are God’s Children, I preach, so why should I refuse to preach when it happens along my blood line?” he asked.
True to his words, the conference, on the theme "Two are better than one" proceeded and saw the induction of Pastor Clement Anchebah on Saturday as the new Chairman of the International Presbytery of the Fountain Gate Chapel.
Rev. Ancheba takes over the administrative functions of the church from the founder, Pastor Eastwood Anaba.