Maintenance of peace must be a national duty

Political parties and other stakeholders have been urged to see the maintenance of peace, law and order as a national duty, which they must uphold at all times no matter which party is in power.

Mr Abu Alhassan Nassam, East Mamprusi Municipal Director of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), who made the call, said upholding peace, law and order would ensure the development of communities while promoting good neighbourliness.

He, therefore, called on the citizenry to eschew acts of violence and choose the path of peaceful coexistence to promote national cohesion.

He was making a presentation at an Inter-Party Dialogue Committee meeting organised at Gambaga by the East Mamprusi Municipal office of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE).

The meeting was to create a platform for dialogue among political parties and other stakeholders in the municipality on effective ways to identify early warning signals of violent extremism, community surveillance and measures to counter the radicalisation of the youth.

Participants included representatives of political parties, civil society organisations, traditional authorities, security services, Electoral Commission, faith-based organisations, people living with disabilities, youth associations, and women groups.

The meeting formed part of the Preventing Electoral Violence and Providing Security to the Northern Border Regions of Ghana project funded by the European Union to counter violent extremism in the country.

Mr Musah Issah Iddrisu, East Mamprusi Municipal Director of the National Investigations Bureau, spoke on preventing violent extremism in the country.

He called for education and empowerment of the youth, respect for human rights and rule of law, gender equality and empowerment of women, community surveillance and awareness creation at worship centres, among others to prevent violent extremism in the country.

Mr Bugri Abudu, a Civic Education Patron in the East Mamprusi Municipality, focused on necessary steps to prevent violence in communities, admonishing all to take steps to report suspected persons to the appropriate security services.

Mr Yidana Abdul-Razak Adams, East Mamprusi Municipal Director of the Electoral Commission, explained that the country’s electoral system did not give room for cheating during elections and advised political parties to be vigilant at polling stations to avoid suspicion.

Mr Issah Kara, an Assistant Director of the East Mamprusi Municipal Assembly, appealed to politicians to campaign on issues and desist from personal attacks to prevent violence during elections.

Participants, in a communique after the meeting, resolved to serve as watchdogs in their communities to check criminal activities as well as ensure peace.