Africa
By Paul Ejime
GHANA’S National Peace Council (NPC) has assured ECOWAS that political parties and other key stakeholders participating in the electoral process ahead of the country’s 7 December 2024 Presidential and Parliamentary elections will sign a peace accord facilitated by the Council before the poll.
Briefing the Core Team of the ECOWAS Long-Term Observation Mission at the NPC Accra headquarters on Wednesday, 20 November, George Amoh, Executive Secretary of the Council’s governing board affirmed that efforts were being stepped up to address the objections raised by the opposition NDC to ensure that all parties signed the document.
Under the accord, which has become a fashion with major elections in West Africa, the signatory parties commit to peaceful conduct and, also resort to legal means of seeking redress if and when aggrieved.
“We have done all there is to do to ensure sustainable peace before, during and after the elections,” he said, noting that after the enactment of the Anti-Vigilantism and Related Offences Act 999 of 2019, the Council embarked on a post-election healing process which brought together key stakeholders.
Amoh said this ensured that the NDC ended the boycott of the peace process after the 2020 elections.
Furthermore, he said the Council was also working with the Interparty Advisory Committee (IPAC), the Inspector-General of Police and the Office of the Chief of Defence Staff in developing a trust-building mechanism, as well as the development of the Code of Conduct for the media towards tackling hate speech and sensitive conflict reporting.
In dealing with violent extremism and other vices, the NPC has continued to facilitate multiple dialogues with the support of partners such as ECOWAS, the United Nations Office for West Africa (UNOWAS) and UNDP to boost the Council’s engagements with various interest groups, including youth, women and civil society organisations and religious leaders.
To consolidate its gains, the NPC has identified some thematic areas “such as tackling political polarisation, establishing a Peace Fund, increasing public education and an Early Warning and Response Mechanism at national and sub-national levels for better coordination and response to peacebuilding in Ghana.”
The Long-Term observers have joined the ECOWAS Core Team. They will be strengthened by the subsequent arrival of the Head of Mission, Nigeria’s former vice-president Namadi Sambo and the Short-term Observers.
22nd November, 2024.
C.E.
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