Kofi Annan Memorial Lectures: Political parties urged to promote peace towards December polls
Political parties have been urged to spread the message of peace among their rank and file as they campaign for votes across the country towards the December 7 general election.
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They have also been entreated to support the Electoral Commission (EC) to deliver a transparent and credible presidential and parliamentary election.
A senior lecturer at University of Ghana, Dr Albert Antwi Boasiako, who was speaking at this year’s Kofi Annan Memorial Lecture in Accra, yesterday, said the EC was the final authority to declare election results, "so we all need to rally behind it".
Dr Antwi Boasiako, who was the proponent of the lecture, said going into the elections, everyone must have a sense of unity and adhere to the rules.
"If we start accusing the EC now, the danger is that we are preparing our minds to reject the election. This is what I am seeing, and that is my fear," he told journalists on the sidelines of the lecture.
Information sharing
Dr Antwi Boasiako, who is also the initiator of International Forum on the Status of Refugees in the World, said party leaders must give the youth proper education rather than false information that could incite riots.
The participants
He said political party leaders were very powerful, and that when they spoke, the youth listened to them.
"So we need to actually start preparing ourselves well and also try to disabuse our minds of the fact that the EC can rig the election. The EC can never rig an election,” Dr Boasiako said.
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He, however, advised the EC to listen to the concerns of the parties, citing the case of transfer of votes and the need to correct any anomaly detected.
The lecturer said if the concerns being raised were real, it could affect the election’s outcome, while admonishing election observers to also show interest in the concerns being expressed about the voters’ register.
"They must be interested in the voters’ register, they must be there to do their underground checks on the registers even before the elections," he added.
Dr Antwi Boasiako further said that stakeholders in the electoral process must work together to ensure the sanctity of election’s outcome to avoid litigations.
Media
On the media, the lecturer said they must be circumspect in their reportage in order not to incite people, adding that "the media also have an important role to play in mitigating election violence".
He also said that the UN had not failed in employing various approaches to prevent conflicts, promote peace and peace building.
Over the years, Dr Boasiako said the UN had demonstrated its ability to prevent and settle regional conflicts to ensure international peace and security.
“The UN must continue to mobilise international support for the implementation of all peace accords expected to accelerate and consolidate peace building,” he added.
Kofi Annan’s commitment
The President of SALT University College, Dr Kodzo Alabo, said Kofi Annan's involvement in peace building across Africa and the world, showed his commitment to the promotion of peace, justice and democracy.
"We all have to learn from the rich legacy that he left us with," he added.