Why religious bodies should stop compulsory HIV testing for prospective couples – EKSACA

The Ekiti State AIDS Control Agency (EKSACA) has cautioned religious bodies in the state against compelling lovers to go for HIV/AIDS test before allowing them to marry.

The Programme Manager of the agency, Dr Charles Doherty, gave the advice in the official bulletin of the agency released in Ado-Ekiti on Monday.

Doherty said recent experience in the state had shown that such actions by religious organisations could destroy homes as well as frustrate marriages.

The manager stressed the need for religious bodies to respect principle of confidentiality attached to the administration and control of HIV/AIDS.

Doherty said that HIV testing should be voluntary, while the results needed to be confidential.

“There must even be a confirmatory test after the initial test, but in the case of religious bodies, they do not wait for such confirmation before making public the HIV/AIDS test conducted on their members”, he said. (NAN)