Stakeholders schooled on violent extremism, peaceful elections

 The National Peace Council (NPC) organised a consultative dialogue meet­ing for stakeholders in the Tolon District of the Northern Region to promote peace ahead of the December 7, 2024, polls.

It was also to identify locally approved mechanisms and inter­ventions, to aid the prevention of terrorism and violent extremism.

The meeting was organised with funding from the Econom­ic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), under the Preventing Violent Extremism in Selected Hotspots in the con­text of Ghana’s 2024 General Election.

 The project, which is being implemented in 20 constituen­cies in nine regions, also seeks to create more awareness on violent extremism, especially regarding hotspot constituencies, ahead of the elections.

It was attended by stakeholders in the district, including representa­tives of the Electoral Commission (EC), the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), the security agencies, traditional and religious authorities, women groups, and persons living with disabilities.

As part of the event, the Par­liamentary Candidates of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the Na­tional Democratic Congress (NDC)

 in the Tolon Constituency, signed a peace pact.

Alhaji Issah Tia, First Vice Chairperson of the NPP in the Constituency, signed the peace pact on behalf of the NPP Parliamen­tary Candidate, Mr Ziblim Adam, Tolon Constituency Chairperson of NDC, also signed on behalf of the Parliamentary Candidate of the NDC.

They both pledged their commitment to promoting peace before, during and after the elec­tions, and resolved to use legitimate means to settle their grievances without violence.

They pledged to encourage their supporters to refrain from indulg­ing in activities that would create violence and instability in the area.

Father Thaddeus Kuusah, Exec­utive Secretary, Northern Regional Peace Council, said the project was part of efforts to increase collaboration between his outfit and communities in preventing and responding to violent extremism.

He also said the initiative was to help improve the capacity of the people in identifying early warning signs and indicators of radicalisa­tion as well as respond to extremist activities.

General Constable Alhassan Gafaru Bateesima of the Tolon District Police Command, appealed to the people to depend on the Electoral Commission for credible information on the elections.

He noted that “Most of the violence cases recorded, are as a result of parties receiving unver­ified information from collation centres.”

Participants suggested measures of preventing violent extremism, including media sen­sitization on dangers of violent extremism and terrorism, engage­ment of political parties and ethnic groups, to promote citizen collab­oration with security agencies.

They also called for formation of community watchdog groups, to complement the efforts of security agencies in maintaining peace. —GNA

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