Religious leaders and the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) are calling for peaceful conduct and condemning incidents of violence and vote-buying following the 2024 polls.
Sheikh Armiyawo Shaibu, the spokesperson for the National Chief Imam, expressed concern about the recent violent incidents during the limited voter registration exercise, urging politicians to stop inciting youth to violence.
He questioned the possibility of peaceful December elections if the trend continues.
“The way that we speak, we are setting a stage and preparing the minds of our young people that at the slightest issue, we will resort to violence. The recent limited voter registration exercise, in fact, gives credence to our fear and anxiety. Just during the limited voter registration, there were incidents of violence where some people were attacked with cutlasses. So, if this is how we’ve begun, then December 2024 will be worse.”
Similarly, Very Rev. Father Clement Kwasi Adjei, Secretary-General of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference, warned against drawing religion into politics, emphasizing its dangerous consequences.
“Religion is a very powerful institution, and we are begging the media not to entertain any person, politician, or party that tries to draw religion into politics. It’s very dangerous.”
Kathleen Addy, Chairperson of the NCCE, appealed to Ghanaians to refrain from vote-buying, which undermines the democratic process and poses risks to national development.
She also urged media outlets to avoid spreading insults, incitement, and defamatory language ahead of the polls.
“When it comes to money in politics, it seems the more we mature in democracy, the more we make it about money. This is completely wrong, and if it were just a matter of being wrong, maybe we could have a discussion about it. But this is something dangerous because the money that’s shared, you have no idea where it’s coming from, and I can assure you that it’s never free money.”
“The media is the most powerful tool for spreading language, and I pray that this time around, the media will consciously disallow political actors from using their platforms to promote negative things.”
In a related development, the NCCE announced the commencement of work by its Inter-Party Dialogue Committees, aimed at promoting peace and tolerance among political parties, especially at the grassroots level.
The Ghana Police Service has also condemned the violent incidents and urged the public to conduct themselves peacefully during the elections.
These calls for peaceful elections come amid concerns about the increasing incidents of violence and tension during the voter registration exercise, which has raised fears about the upcoming December polls.
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