“ Kakistocracy ”: An Ethical Challenge to Christian Character Formation in Ghana

The pressing need to tackle the alarming erosion of moral standards in Ghana has been advocated. This comes in the wake of recent media reports of Ghana's rapid deterioration in moral values. In a country where 71% of the population identifies as Christians, the moral character of the nation has witnessed inefficiencies, displayed by incompetent leadership at all levels, spanning from family units and chieftaincy, and education to religious and political spheres. This article argued that these degradations raise an ethical question for the Church in Ghana as far as the Character formation of the Church is concerned. The question that this article sought to address was, why is Kakistocracy on the ascendancy, if indeed 71% of Ghanaians are Christians? What is happening? Through a review of some existing literature, the article discussed the concept of Kakistocracy and the challenges it poses to Christian Character Formation in Ghana. Through the lens of the ethical theory of virtue ethics, as the conceptual taxonomy, this article argued that the degradation of moral values means the Church in Ghana has not been able to shape the moral character of its members. Worded differently, the Church’s influence on shaping her member’s moral character has been low, or adulterated. The article, therefore, challenges the Church to critically examine her Character Formation agenda. The paper affirmed that the Church’s nurturing ministry has been adulterated and shaken by unpredictable political, social, technological, and cultural developments in the country. This article further argued that the Church, as one of the socialisation institutions in Ghana, has a role to play in preparing leaders with moral fortitude in society. Therefore, an urgent need is to strategically (re)construct the Church’s Character Formation programme for its members. So that they would be able to steer the nation’s social transformation.

The word "Kakistocracy" was invented and first used in the seventeenth century, but in 1985, Peter Bowler used the term in his book The Superior Person's Book of Words,6 to mean a state or society governed by its least suitable or competent citizens by the most corrupt or inept people. 78The word is coined from two Greek words, kakistos (κάκιστος; worst) and kratos (κράτος; rule).Some of the major indicators of "Kakistocracy" in the society are the absence of capable and knowledgeable people in authority, an increased level of corruption, leaders who take advantage of their positions and act in their own interest rather than seeking the common good of the people, disrespect for the rule of law, as well as, the degradation of the values of the society.
As an enemy of the moral consciousness of society, Kakistocracy promotes a state of unethical behaviours such as deception, misconduct, and exploitation.Kempe Ronald Hope observed that the rise of kakistocracy in society is a result of the decline in ethical leadership. 9Leaders in positions of authority are expected to exhibit certain moral traits, such as honesty, and integrity, ensure justice for all, and seek the common good of all citizens.Ethical leaders are generational thinkers and responsible leaders.They are transparent in all that they do.They walk the talk, and they are role models in society.They do not degrade the natural environment, but protect it.They promote peace.Simply put, ethical leaders are not corrupt, but they influence their societies positively.Other causes of kakistocracy have been identified as the deterioration of educational standards and lack of patriotism, an increase in demagoguery, or making false promises to gain power or popularity.Others are the loss of public trust in the various institutions and the negative influence of special interest groups within society. 10It must be emphasised that kakistocracy, described as "a time bomb," impedes the development of any society. 11e Decline in the Moral Standards and Christianity This article argues that the evidence and the increase of Kakistocracy and other social vices in recent media reports in Ghana implies that the Church's influence on shaping members' moral character has been low, or adulterated. 12The article identifies two reasons for this account.The first is the paradigm shift of the character formation ministry of the Church.Gone were the days when the Church in Ghana focused all its attention on nurturing or preparing its members to be disciplined Christians in society.Now the attention has shifted from preaching and teaching for members to be true and responsible Christians, to prosperity gospel and prophetism.The second is the unpredictable political, social, technological, and cultural environment in the country.All these raise serious ethical challenges for the Church's nurturing ministry.
In any case, the Church is expected to disciple its members for social change.Again, every disciple is to have a change in character from their old ways, as exhorted by the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:17 stating, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" (ESV).How can the Church ensure that characters are formed or nurtured in line with biblical principles?The following sections answer this question.

The Role of Character in Ethical Decision-Making
It is the position of this article that any effort to salvage the alarming erosion of moral standards in Ghana requires a clear understanding of the belief in character.Character is an internal energy that inspires humans to act, restrains them from acting, and gives them the wisdom or moral compass to know when each action is appropriate.Everything done in life is driven by character.When a character is developed and held internally, it leads to a virtuous life.This article argues that the issue of "Kakistocracy" is a degradation of moral character in Ghana.This raises an ethical challenge to the Christian-Biblical Character Formation programme of the Church.To be able to ethically examine this issue, it is appropriate to situate the discussion in one of the three major approaches in normative ethics, in virtue ethics.Modern virtue ethicists draw heavily on the Aristotelian notion of virtue and character. 13Virtue ethics is identified as one that emphasises the virtues, or moral character in contrast to the approach that emphasises duties or rules (deontology) or that emphasises the consequences of actions (consequentialism). 14nother virtue ethics view is exemplified by Jonathan Barnes and Anthony Kenny.They maintained that it is not possible to act at all in political [family, religious, educational, environmental, or governmental] affairs unless one is of a certain kind, that is to be virtuous. 15Now to be virtuous is to possess the virtues.If therefore one is to act in "political" affairs, one must have a virtuous character.Virtue ethics is concerned with "Being" rather than "Doing."For virtue ethicists, the question is, "What sort of person should I be?" and not "What should I do?"These views about virtue ethics imply that the Church must strategically take her character formation seriously, as it has been emphasised, not as the inculcation of rules but as the training of character. 16It is in this light that Joel Westheimer observed that nurturing authorities and those involved in human-centred educational strategies have a responsibility to guide individuals to be mindful of such inquiry.17

The Biblical Foundation of Christian Character Formation
To examine the nexus between character formation and social transformation, and the role of the Church, it is apt to situate it in a Biblical context.One cannot talk about character nurturing or formation without going back to the Old Testament.It has been observed that Character Formation [or Christian Education] has its foundation in the Jewish religio-cultural settings. 18Consequently, some scholars have argued that Christian Character Formation or Nurturing cannot be discussed and appreciated without referring to its Jewish roots in the Old Testament.James Ottis Sayes observed that Christianity until now, had maintained a significant identity of its tradition from the Jewish culture.In the view of Sayes, Christianity may appropriately be referred to as a "Transformed Judaism." 19ducation or Christian nurturing in the Old Testament was more of a religious category, which focused on God. 20William Barclay explained that Jewish education was entirely religious. 21He controlled the events in the affairs of His people. 22A critical survey of the Old Testament revealed that God expected the fathers to help train their children with all the components of the law, after the ways of God.Such nurturing activities were to take place at home; on the way; before they go to bed; and when they wake up (Deut.6:7-9).He also instructed them regarding individual and communal virtues, for their ultimate good, for their conservation, and their virtue (Deut.6: 24, 25).Such nurturing activities were therefore expected to culminate in the transformation of the entire nation.Thus, education or character formation was an absolute requirement from God for the people and a pre-requisite for their survival.There were no textbooks except the Scriptures; all primary education was preparation for reading the Law; and all higher education was the reading and the study of it. 23The Scriptures, therefore, became the foundation for character formation and social change.
It must be emphasised that such religious training was aimed at enabling the individual to acquire knowledge about God, obey His laws, and also to appreciate the ethics of their forebears.The Hebrews believed that failure to do this meant that the spiritual well-being, societal preservation and transformation, and the moral standards of the entire nation, were at stake (Psalm 78:1-11).It has also been observed that the difficult days of the Judges came because there had come a generation [or leaders], who knew not the LORD nor the mighty works He had done for His people (Judg.2:10-15).Such a negative situation affected the entire nation and its progress.It implies that once the moral standards of a people are degraded, the entire community is also affected, for "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people" (Proverbs 14:34).Adherence to the law, the instruction, and the principles of God gives an identity to a nation.24

Character Formation in the Historical Books of the Old Testament
Character formation for the Jews did not end with the patriarchs, but continued in the historical books, with a different focus on having a national identity in a pluralistic world.The Jewish people who were deported to Babylon after the destruction of Jerusalem in 586/587 B.C., were confronted with unfamiliar customs and traditions.For instance, their names were changed, and they learned a new language.Their cultural settings were changed.The socio-political environment was different.
Notwithstanding the threats from unfamiliar customs and mores, the Jews kept their faith even to the point of death.They fiercely attempted to stabilize their tradition.They asked, "How shall we sing the LORD's song in a foreign land"?(Ps.137:4).It was a question of identity.Thomas H. Groome suggested that the attention [of the people of God] was on how to preserve their belief in bondage and even in a diverse cultural milieu. 25In difficult economic, political, and social situations, the people of God kept their identity.They had been prepared to face every challenge, even in a strange land, to be faithful followers of God, wherever they found themselves.Their religious moral nurturing enabled them to keep their character intact.Preserving the identity of the nation through character formation, therefore, became even more vital throughout the post-exilic era. 26Similarly, contemporary character nurturing by the Church and other nurturing institutions should focus their attention on preparing individual Christians and followers, to become faithful disciples, even in the face of persecution, and corruption, so that they can influence their communities positively.

Character Formation in the Wisdom Literature
The concept of Character Formation in the four books of the Wisdom Literature (Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs) was geared towards the issue of how to add "Sophia," or Wisdom to everyday life situations.Gangel claimed that this was to guarantee godly conduct that empowers the individual to master life (Prov.8:  32-36). 27It has been remarked that the goal of wisdom is not that which shows others how clever, or pious one is, but to "receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity."(Prov.1:3).The Wisdom Literature, thus, reveals what it means to please God, as a responsible member of the society; whether young or old, those in authority or ordinary citizens, educated or uneducated, for "everyone who pays heed to biblical wisdom will become wise" (Prov.1: 4-6). 28drian E. Hinkle's work on the Pedagogical Theory of Wisdom Literature is very instructive to note.She aids the thinking of readers by affirming that throughout the Wisdom Literature, intensive Character formation is forcefully demonstrated through various methodologies of engaging the learner to be a critical thinker, scrutinise, and contribute, as the religious tradition is passed on from one generation to the next. 29This indicates that, socially, the Church must prepare individual members to be responsible and good citizens, by always acting in "godly wisdom" and helping others to act similarly.This ultimately means that Christian leaders, whether in the Church, school, the marketplace, within the chieftaincy institutions, in governance, sports, media, in the judiciary, must always ensure that they apply godly wisdom in their everyday dealings, and not be described as "Kakis." 30

Character Formation in the Gospels
There are several examples of the issue of character nurturing dotted throughout the New Testament in general.Judo-Christian instruction aimed to ensure that the moral character of believers was based on the teachings of Jesus Christ.It has been observed that the Sermon on the Mount, (Matt.5: 1-12), for example, is a typical divine schedule for Christian Character formation.It offers Christians a perfect picture of applying knowledge to enable individuals to live virtuously in a social setting. 31As indicated, the Sermon on the Mount puts a moral responsibility on the individual Christians in their social interactions. 32efore the teachings of Jesus Christ was the illustrative and parabolic rabbinical interpretation of the law (Torah) and its application to daily life.This was demonstrated in a concise guideline or rule of conduct for the Jews, referred to as the "halakha." 33This guideline indicates how every Jew is expected to behave based on the teachings of the Torah or the law.It encompasses all areas of human life, including civil, criminal, political, religious, moral, ritual, and family issues. 34For the Jews, the "halakha" was the guiding principle for life, and every family was expected to instruct their children based on that.It was the basis of ethical behaviour. 35ristian Education in the Early Church Character formation in the Early Church was more of an identity issue.That is, how to express one's faith, or, how to stand for the faith in Christ Jesus even in the face of persecution. 36The early Christians faced diverse opposition from the Jewish leaders, and the Roman authorities, yet they kept their faith.As the Christian faith moved out of Palestine into different cultural communities, new cultural questions emerged.Christian nurturing was thus designed to make the Christian faith relevant within a pluralistic environment, as well as, keeping one's faith.
Several means or moments were adopted to ensure that the characters of the new converts were formed or nurtured as faithful disciples of Christ.One such moment through which the early Church carried out character nurturing of its members was through House Fellowships or Community Cells (as indicated in Philp 4: 21; Col 4: 14,15; Rom.16:3-5, 1 Cor.16:19; Rom 16:10,11; 1 Cor.1:11).Gerhard van den Heever remarked that the construction of Christian character in the early Church was shaped by partaking in the group [or House Fellowships] activities like worship, ceremonies, moral instructions, and relationship practices.All these group dynamics helped in shaping the believers' communal interactions and institutions. 37These communal interactions included all facets of group life aimed at: Koinonia (Fellowship), Diakonia (Service); Leiturgia, (Worship); Kerygma (Preaching); and Didache (Teaching), (Acts 2 : 42, 44-47).These activities influenced the behaviour patterns of the believers. 38Through these activities, the early Christians were prepared to influence their communities.
Furthermore, seeking the common good of all in society became a critical issue for the early Christians, and as such, one of the reasons for character nurturing.The early Church experienced cultural challenges; some were being discriminated against, and others were seen as inferior to others. 39An example was recorded in the book of Acts when it came to food sharing.The Jews and Gentiles had problems.When all these challenges are brought together, the issue that attracted the attention of the early Church in terms of Christian nurturing was how to prepare people for faithful discipleship. 40Consequently, the early Church ensured that characters, attitudes, and moral behaviours were formed not to be self-seeking individuals but to meet the needs of others, especially, the less privileged within the society.Again, the characters of these believers were not only fashioned to be good disciples of Christ, as they waited for the second coming of Christ or Parousia, in their daily chores, but, as they faced persecution, as they received the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and as they encountered new cultures.
Other means by which characters were formed in the early Church were through participation in "International" consultations and meetings, as witnessed in Acts 15.It was a way of handling problems creeping up within the early Church.It was a learning moment that tried to answer the gospel-culture encounter. 41At such international meetings, relevant issues are deliberated upon, and presentations that are relevant to Christian living and ethical behaviours are made on various topics.Apostolic writings and pastoral letters became yet another way of explaining issues to the early Christians.These writings and letters were written to the faithful to encourage them in their faith, and the kind of moral decisions they take.

The Family as a Nurturing Institution
In addition to the above moments of nurturing was the Family system.The family unit became the centre of Jewish religious teaching and education.God placed the responsibility on parents to constantly teach their children if they were to know the law of God.Christopher J. H. Wright argued that "The family was a centre of worship and teaching, and was, therefore, a vital agent in maintaining the continuity of the traditions and faith of the nation from generation to generation." 42 This is evident from Gen 18: 19, where God said, "For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him."(Gen.18:  19).
Explaining the role of the family in education, Miller asserted that the Old Testament stresses the significance of the family with its religious rituals and the responsibility of parents for bringing up children in the knowledge of the Law and the fear of the LORD. 43Books were not available during the early years of the patriarchs, but the memory of the Jews was trained to recall the chief points of their history. 44Barclay also declared that "The responsibility of teaching the child is something that the parent cannot evade if he is to satisfy the law of God." 45 Every child in a pious home was necessarily exposed to the central teachings in this manner.For example, God instructed the Israelites: Be on your guard!Make certain that you do not forget, as long as you live, what you have seen with your own eyes.Tell your children and your grandchildren about the day you stood in the presence of the LORD your God at Mount Sinai, when he said to me, 'Assemble the people.I want them to hear what I have to say so that they will learn to obey me as long as they live and so that they will teach their children to do the same (Duet.4: 9-10, GNB).
The instruction was to tell their children for them to learn so that they would teach their children to do the same.The older generation was to educate the younger generation, and the younger generation was to learn.This was how education was to be given.The same instruction was also given elsewhere, "and in order that you may be able to tell your children and grandchildren how I made fools of the Egyptians when I performed the miracles.All of you will know that I am the LORD" (Ex 10: 2, GNB).
As a result of this instruction from God, these words, among others, were learned by every young person: "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD, and you shall love the LORD your god with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might," (Deut.6: 4-5, (RSV)).Combined with this oral teaching was the observation of the Jewish rituals in the home.Arlo Ayers Brown admitted that until the rise of the Sunday school movement in the eighteenth century, the home was the basic institution for religious instruction. 46ll these instructions were to ensure that the Jews served God well and that they became different from the other Nations.Their knowledge about God was reflected in their actions or behaviour patterns. 47

Christology and Character Formation
It has been presented in this article that virtue ethics is basically about the character of the person or the Agent behind the action and not necessarily the actions of the person.Essentially, virtue ethics considers the person's feelings, attitudes, conduct, and way of life of the person, as the basis for an ethically relevant life. 48Worded differently, the character of the person plays an important role in the person's moral conduct in society.
From the above analysis, it can be safely argued in this article that contemporary Christian nurturing professionals and institutions can implement a component of virtue ethics as a guide in their nurturing activities.The Church has the belief that when one comes to Christ, he becomes a new creation and that individual's way of life changes, through the power of the Holy Spirit.The nature of that individual changes.The Apostle Paul, in his epistle to the Church at Corinth, told them, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" (2 Cor 5:17).Such individuals become Christ-like.Benjamin R. Kilian explained that an individual who previously could not do anything virtuous according to the standard of God is now clad in the decency of Christ and has an entirely new perspective on life. 49Christ imputes His righteousness into that person to enable that individual to act in a morally acceptable and relevant way.The expectation is that such a renewed life must be seen in the daily activities or be reflected within the community, school, office, education, health, governance, chieftaincy institution, and in how the natural environment is treated.
Since Christians have the faith that Christ's nature is the foundation of a proper ethical formation, they must imitate Christ in their daily activities, " Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ" 1 Cor.11:1).This implies that the basis of virtue ethics lies in Christology, that is, a relationship founded in Christ.The Church must nurture its members to be mature Christians.Mature Christians will witness their faith wherever they are.As it has been observed, imitating Christ and glorifying God through consecration, dedication, and faithfulness must be the ultimate goal of every Christian. 50e Role of the Church As noted earlier, there has been a paradigm shift from the Church's task of nurturing members to become mature and faithful disciples, who would transform their societies through their daily lives, to materialism, or the prosperity gospel and the giving of "Akwankyere" or giving spiritual directions.Paul Gilford, for example, averred that the prosperity gospel has gained popularity because these Churches focus their teachings on materialism. 51Several scholars including, Omenyo and Atiemo, Asamoah-Gyadu et al., Anderson, Degbe, Wiafe, and Gariba, and others, have written extensively about this phenomenon, and this current article does not intend to add to that debate. 52owever, this current article maintains that this phenomenon has greatly contributed to the failure to restore the moral course of the country.It is evident that the content of the message preached to over 71% of Christians in Ghana has changed, and there is, therefore, the need to have some introspection as a Church.In addition to their contemporary spiritual focus, the Church in Ghana as a matter of urgency, must also devote more attention to character formation and the cultivation or development of such moral qualities as truthfulness, loyalty, respect, patriotism, courage, self-discipline, service, and selflessness.This article holds the conviction that when individuals are well prepared to be like Christ, their character will be transformed, and it will reflect in their daily activities.They will not become kakis in the community. 53his, therefore, calls for a paradigm shift in the nurturing programmes of the Church and the various nurturing institutions like schools.It has been said that when the drum beat changes, you have to change the style of your dance. 54There is an urgent need to strategically reconstruct the Church's character formation programme for its members to become mature and faithful Christians.The responsibility of the Church is, in collaboration with other nurturing institutions, to arise and ensure corruption, injustice, and poverty are eradicated.To influence the behaviours of the citizenry, the Church must go back to the drawing board. 55In addition to preparing its members, the Church must use its media and other platforms to speak on the ills of the nation without compromise.
As noted above, the unpredictable political, pluralistic, social, technological, religious, and cultural environments in the country have all adulterated and shaken the moral standards of the society.These secularisation elements have eroded the moral values of the society, not only institutionally, but also socioeconomically. 56Currently, issues of morality and integrity are no longer the major concerns of the Church in Ghana.The Practices of Akwankyerɛ 57 [spiritual direction], 58 and Prophetism, 59 have become the order of the day.The contemporary Church in Ghana, especially the Neo-Prophetic Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches, 60 focuses on the external aspects of Christianity, neglecting its core mandate of preparing faithful disciples as mandated by the Great Commission.David Okai concluded that it has become obvious that some prophets and their prophetic ministry in Ghana have become an avenue for corruption, through the exploitation and manipulation of innocent and desperate followers. 61In a nutshell, preaching and teaching, or having programmes, that instill moral values, or prepare their adherents to be competent and responsible Christians and leaders, have not been on the agenda of most of these Churches.Their members are not given the practical steps to develop virtues and avoidance of vices. 62Instead, these Churches emphasise theological concepts/teachings such as enemy (ɔtamfo): spiritual guidance (Akwankyerɛ): anointing, (Ngosra): prosperity (Yiedie): exorcism, and healing. 63These have led to a disconnection between faith and practice.Thus, contributing to the absence of a strong sense of morality and ethical values in the public space, thereby affecting the development of society. 64t must be emphasised that, as one of the nurturing institutions in Ghana, the Church should not only care about the salvation of the souls of its members but must also care about its members in leadership positions.Ransford Edward Van Gyampo and Bossman Asare have maintained that the Church has a membership that cuts across all associations constituting the civil society in Ghana. 65Given this, the Church has the divine mandate to prepare its members to be faithful; legislators, businessmen and women, politicians, doctors and nurses, teachers and lecturers, media personnel, patriotic sportsmen and women, and respectful youth.Thus, the Church must prepare leaders for society and across all fields, including caring for the natural environment.
The quest for the Church to go back to the drawing board is therefore timely. 66The "only game in town" 67 for the Christian community is to strategically nurture, fashion, or form the moral character of its followers, for them not only to be faithful disciples, as they wait for the second coming of Christ, but also to be agents of change in governance, judiciary, schools, media, sports, in protecting the natural environment, in their private lives, and any other leadership position.The Church should not only be interested in the numbers that attend their services every week, but equally be interested in preparing them to remain focused, to do the right thing in their workplaces, and not be kakis while waiting for the Parousia.In other words, the Church in Ghana should not only concentrate all their attention on "spiritual matters," but also on preparing faithful Christians, in the society as well.This is based on the assumption that the private life of a person of integrity must always be consistent with their public life. 68The Church must help its members to have a healthy balance between their faith and their actions, that is orthodoxy and orthopraxis. 69akistocracy in Ghanaian society demonstrates that Christians in leadership positions may have the right teachings, and the right information, about the Christian faith, but how to apply this in their daily lives is the problem.How to become faithful disciples in society is the challenge.The Church must therefore come up with a framework or a programme that will ensure that the integrity of its members is upheld.The Church, and all other nurturing institutions, including educational institutions, must help its members to move from orthodoxy to orthopraxis, which is based on sound biblical-moral principles.

RECOMMENDATIONS
This article has argued that the Church, as one of the socialisation institutions in Ghana, has a role to play in preparing leaders with moral fortitude in society.To ensure this, the following are recommended.
Christologically, the Church must intentionally and continuously preach and teach moral sermons to its members to not only to make them faithful Christians, as they wait for the second coming of Christ, but also challenge them to be responsible disciples in society.the Church must help its members to be Christ-like in their daily activities.
Advocacy: The Church, through its character formation role, must ensure that the increasing growth of the Christian faith in Ghana, is satisfactorily mirrored in the social, economic, and political life of society, through effective advocacy, capacity growth, applicable public engagement, and information sharing, what Aquiline Tarimo calls "theology of life."70This current article believes that the expansion of capacities of Christian leaders and followers must emphasise hands-on communal advocacy and sustainable transformational activities outside the normal Church service activities for the anticipated social transformation.
Socially, for the Church in Ghana to be relevant it must be seen to be preparing individuals for not only heaven, but to be responsible and faithful disciples in issues of good governance, peace, sustainable development, environmental sustainability, accountability, and integrity across all human spheres, human rights, equal opportunities, justice, and social transformation.
Behaviourally and Attitudinally, with sound biblical-moral principles the Church in Ghana and other nurturing institutions, especially educational institutions, must pay strategic attention to the formation, or the (re)construction of the worldviews of their faithful disciples toward social transformation.
Pedagogically, educational institutions must include issues of moral lessons in the teaching of Science, Technology, Mathematics, and Engineering (STEM) educational policy.This will help build moral uprightness in the students right from school.This article is therefore calling for an additional M to the STEM educational philosophy, to become STEMM.

CONCLUSION
This study has been able to demonstrate that the Church has a unique role to play in forming the character of its members to reduce, or if need be, to prevent Kakistocracy in the country.This article maintained that in a diverse religio-cultural setting like Ghana, a character can only be formed if Christians form a unique counter-cultural community in which the Christian character is (re) constructed on sound Christian principles, with Christ as the foundation.The mandate of the Church in focusing its attention on the concept of character cannot be overemphasised.This is key to the development of moral standards in the country, and the total transformation of the nation.As the Apostle Paul commanded, "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things" (Phil.4:8).Unless the Church assists in reinforcing, and or (re)constructing Christian ethics, through the preaching and teaching of Christian Biblical-Moral principles, which is Christ-centered, to the over 71% Christians, Ghana will continue to be overwhelmed with Kakistocracy.