The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has extended its Inter-party Dialogue Committee (IPDC) meeting to the Kumbungu District of the Northern Region.
The meeting brought together stakeholders including political party representatives, security personnel, youth groups, community leaders as well as faith-based organisations.
The IPDC is being carried out under a project dubbed: “Preventing and Containing Violent Extremism (PVCE)”.
The PVCE is implemented by the NCCE with funding from the European Union (EU).
At the meeting, the committee members were empowered to monitor ill-happenings in communities, and taught ways to fish out radicalised youth.
Madam Janet Ameseya, Kumbungu District Director of NCCE, addressing the committee, said the NCCE worked with the theme: “Together We Can Build Ghana, So Get Involved,” which included taking steps to prevent people leveraging on election activities to perpetuate violence.
She said all forms of violence had the potential to derail the country’s democratic gains, underscoring the importance of engaging stakeholders on peace.
She mentioned that any challenge to democracy in this year’s election could have an adverse effect, which could embolden anti-democratic forces in the sub-region.
Mr Aliyu Mohammed, Northern Regional Director, NCCE, said the Commission deemed it necessary to engage the IPDC, who represented a spectrum of the district given that election was a yearning affair that required peace.
He said in ensuring peace before, during and after the elections, political parties must address issues in line with rules and regulations governing electoral processes, through the Electoral Commission.
He acknowledged the Kumbungu District as one noted for peace during and after elections and encouraged the IPDC members to act towards maintaining peace in the area.
He advised participants to follow due process in everything related to the elections in prioritising the country’s peace.
He said, “while some countries lost peace during elections, Ghana has remained peaceful after eight elections.”
Alhaji Abdul-Razak Saani, former Northern Regional Director of NCCE, who was the resource person for the event, said the IPDC was constituted to appreciate individual differences.
He indicated that countries under extremists’ attacks were once peaceful saying extremists took advantage of vulnerabilities to strike.
He bemoaned the prevalence of chieftaincy disputes in the country noting that there were about 332 unresolved chieftaincy disputes.
He reiterated that prolonged chieftaincy conflicts, and widespread youth unemployment could be a recipe for violent extremism, hence those issues must be tackled and addressed.
He urged the IPDC to work collectively against ethnic marginalisation, which bred violence and pursued respect for everyone irrespective of tribe or ethnic group.
