NCCE HOLDS FORUM IN BEREKUM (PAGE 17)

The Deputy Brong Ahafo Regional Director of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Mr Michael Amponsah, has reiterated that the key to the avoidance of any bad political experience lies in tolerance, peaceful co-existence, mutual trust, consultation and consensus buiding on issues that seek to strengthen the country’s democracy.
However, he pointed out that political tolerance could not be achieved on a silver platter but “we need to work for it as a people”.
Mr Amponsah made the call in a presentation at a forum organised by the Berekum Directorate of the NCCE for parliamentary aspirants, political party executives, security personnel, religious bodies and the media, as well as other stakeholders in politics in the Berekum Municipality.
Speaking on the topic, “Ensuring Peaceful Elections 2008”, Mr Amponsah stressed that political tolerance was very crucial to the success of democracy in the country because it enhanced national unity, stability, mutual respect, trust among different political parties as well as ensure effective development.
“We need to come together as a nation to resolve the numerous challenges of our under-development and we need to join hands in unity to fight poverty, disease and ignorance so that we can deepen our democratic dispensation”, he emphasised.
The Deputy Regional NCCE Director observed that religious leaders and their followers were in a very good position to make a great impact on any move that would influence their congregation, adding that, “they should be able to call to order people whose activities or actions were likely to create confusion in the society.
According to Mr Amponsah, the clergy could devote part of their sermons to lecture on peace and tolerance, or call on other resource persons to perform the same duty.
“As we make frantic efforts to promote tolerance, we should try as much as possible to desist from all acts that promote intolerance, such as intimidation, greed, corruption, laying strong emphasis on money in politics, electoral fraud and malpractices, and biased reportage by the media”.
Mr Amponsah noted that the December 2008 election was very critical in the annals of Ghana’s political history, as the country’s democratic governance would be put to the test, hence the need to undertake political activities with decorum.
He said as stakeholders in governance, “we must all be guided by principles that seek to foster peace; what we say and promise should not be different from what we actually do”.
He said the consolidation and deepening of Ghana’s democracy must depend on the level of sincerity towards all the pillars of democracy, especially at this time that the country needs free, fair and transparent elections”.