By D.I. Laary
Koforidua, Dec. 17, GNA – The National Peace Council (NPC) in the Eastern Region has intensified its peace initiatives following the recent general elections, aiming to foster stability and collaboration among communities.
The initiatives are also to prevent and address potential conflicts that may arise in the post-election period.
The Council engaged several youth bodies from various agencies including the National Youth Authority and the youth parliament in a workshop in Koforidua.
It was about the dangers of violent extremism, radicalisation, and hate speech to prevent violence and maintain peace leading up to the 2024 general elections.
Prof. Mark Boadu, Chairman of the Eastern Regional Peace Council, took participants through several topics on countering hate speech and violent extremism narratives, providing them with vital insights and strategies.
Key topics included a thorough examination of the Vigilantism and Related Offences Act (Act 999), which seeks to tackle incidents of lawlessness and societal violence.
Participants analysed the drivers, and root causes of various forms of hate speech and violent extremism, while also identifying early warning signs of radicalization.
He emphasised the importance of being mindful of online communication and avoiding hate speech, stating, “Hate speech is not freedom of speech. When hate is allowed to thrive, it creates tension and makes people feel insulted and threatened. This endangers coexistence in society.”
Additionally, he stressed that “hate speech fuels division and polarization.
“We should not create unnecessary social tension; we are united and bonded as one.”
Ms. Rita Benewah Yali, a Deputy Director, Administration and Human Resources, at the National Peace Council, stated that the council has received support from the ECOWAS Commission to launch the project titled “Preventing Violent Extremism in Hotspots in the Context of the 2024 General Elections.”
The project aims to prevent violent extremism in identified hotspots ahead of Ghana’s peaceful general election on December 7, both before, during, and after the event.
She said the Peace Council has engaged several communities, including Nsawam and Suhum, to push the agenda of peace for harmonious living and to encourage the reduction or even eradication of hate speech in public discourse.
“You know, over the period in our media and even in our daily discussions, there has been an extensive show of disregard for one another, which has led to a lot of conflicts, some of which are preventable,” she said.
“As one of our mechanisms, the Peace Council seeks to build the capacity of the youth. We are here to encourage them to consider one another’s feelings in their discourse so that we don’t have these pockets of violence that sometimes even lead to death—preventable death.”
Adding, “Generally, what this programme is about is promoting peace and the agenda of peaceful coexistence, so we can move the nation forward to the place that we all want.”
She noted that Suhum and Nsawam are considered hotspots, and that the council was aware of the central and sensitive issues that happened in the last election.
“We have identified 25 hotspots nationwide and have spread ourselves as a council across all these hotspots to promote the peace agenda,” she added.
Ms. Yali noted that the initiative was primarily to sustain the peace Ghanaians have achieved and address the excesses that emerged in the aftermath of the December 7, 2024, presidential and parliamentary elections.
She expressed concern that even though engagement with communities started ahead of time, it was unfortunate that, disturbances occurred after the election, which highlights the importance of sustaining peace in those areas to remind everyone about the need for calm.
“I want to acknowledge the good work that the Peace Council is doing. However, it is concerning that despite our pre-election engagement, we are still witnessing some skirmishes after the election,” she added.
“As Peace Council, our mandate enables us to engage with and promote the peace agenda,” she said. Generally, the communities we interacted with before the election experienced peaceful conditions during that period.
The skirmishes that did occur primarily revolved around the collation process.”
She noted that the situation could have escalated further had there not been these engagements, but fortunately, it did not.
In an interview with the GNA, Ms. Faustina Takyi-Mensah, a member of the New Juaben South Youth Parliament, emphasized the need for political parties to refrain from making false promises to their supporters, also known as foot soldiers, during election campaigns.
Ms. Gavi N. Rhodaline, the Administrator of the National Youth Authority, urged her colleagues and young people in general to verify the information they receive from both traditional and digital media outlets.
She pointed out that many media organizations tend to prioritize sensational news stories over informative ones.
“We must also learn not to be passive consumers of information and avoid acting impulsively whenever we come across certain news stories,” she advised.
GNA