By Maxwell Awumah
Tsikata Kofe (O/R), May 22, GNA – Ghanaians have been advised to be security conscious and report suspicious characters in their midst as the country was not immune to terrorist attacks.
Mr Setriakor Kwesi Gagakumah, the Oti Deputy Regional Director of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), who gave the advice said there was the need to check background of visitors they received thoroughly as most terrorist camouflage themselves as visitors and carried out their activities unaware.
The NCCE Deputy Regional Director said the manifestation of contemporary violent extremism and terrorism in West Africa had been its transnational nature, where an attack executed in one location might be premeditated in another, with human and material resources from multiple other locations.
Mr Gagakumah made these statements at Tsikata Kofe, a farming community in the Kadjebi District of the Oti Region, during a sensitisation on Preventing and Containing Violent Extremism (PCVE), organised by the Kadjebi District Directorate of the Commission, with support from European Union (EU).
The Commission, with support from the EU, is currently undertaking education on PCVE in 79 selected Districts across the country.
Mr Gagakumah urged the residents to help sustain the prevailing peace in the area by tolerating divergent views.
According to him, tolerance, fairness, respect for fundamental human rights, respect for the rule of law, equality of opportunity, among others would help keep the nation together.
Mr Daniel Agbesi Latsu, the Kadjebi District Director of the Commission, said the threat of terrorists attacking the country was real as they could strike anytime and anywhere.
He said Counterterrorism was the defensive measures used to reduce the vulnerability of individuals, information, and facilities to terrorist acts.
The NCCE District Director said one could not identify a terrorist or a radicalised person by physical appearance, but through their activities.
He said they could know them if they realised that the person is becoming increasingly argumentative, refusing to listen to different points of view, unwilling to engage with children who were different and embracing conspiracy theories.
The other signs were; feeling persecuted, changing friends and appearance, distancing themselves from old friends, converting to new religion, sympathetic to extremist ideologies and being secretive and reluctant to discuss their whereabouts.
On what to do during violent attacks, Mr. Latsu said, they should “RUN” if there was a safe route and if not “HIDE” and call emergency numbers 191, 999 and 18555 for help.
He said in case they spotted suspicious terrorist attack, they should not confront the individuals involved, but hide and jot down the number of people, gender, ages, and physical descriptions, describe exactly what they were doing, provide the exact location, what they were wearing, provide date, time and duration of activity and describe vehicle, make, colour, number plate and weapons they were using to attack and then, report via the above emergency numbers.
Mr Latsu also appealed to the participants to share the information received from the NCCE educative team with others as they might not visit all the communities in the district.
Mr Mutakilu Tsadenu, the Assemblyman for Butabe/Obuase Electoral Area, commended the team for the insightful education and called for more of such engagement.
GNA