CSOs launch voter education campaign for peace

General news for Friday, November 27, 2020

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

2020-11-27

The Coalition of Civil Society Organizations on Governance and Security has emphasized the need for security agencies, the Electoral Commission, political parties and the general public to promote and embrace the message of peace at the head of the nation in the 2020 elections.

At a press conference on November 26, 2020, the executive director of the West African Center to Combat Extremism, Mutaru Mumuni Muqthar, said that for peace to prevail in the country, there must be an effort consented to by the institutions and the general public to achieve the same.

He noted that as the elections approach, there have been concerns about the activities of vigilante groups, retaliatory attacks by fans of the party, and the use of inflammatory speeches on media platforms.

Mumuni Muqthar called on the police and relevant institutions to place the message of peace at the center of any discussion.

To help achieve this, the CSO Coalition on Governance and Security has launched the ‘One Peace in Ghana’ campaign that seeks to raise awareness of peace and the dangers of violence.

“The CSO Coalition on Governance and Security will work with partners in Ghana’s 16 regions and 275 constituencies to mobilize eligible citizens to come forward to vote on Election Day without fear of intimidation.”

“We will carry out a simultaneous voter education and information campaign against electoral violence. Education will have information on the prevention of human rights violations, ”he said.

A worrying trend observed in the last elections is the increase in spoiled ballots.

To help deal with the situation, CSOs have committed to educating citizens on how to approach the electoral process.

“Deepen the knowledge of citizens about the electoral process and their electoral options. This will help reduce the nullity of votes and, at the same time, will help citizens make better-informed decisions ”.

“The peace campaign will target ALL ELIGIBLE VOTERS, providing them with credible information to increase their willingness to go to the polls to vote and ensure the election of their preferred political leaders while refraining from violent tendencies at the polls, the period leading up to the declaration of results and consequences of all electoral processes, ”he said.

Mentioning the hot spots identified by the security agencies, Mumuni Muqthar urged the security agencies to intensify their efforts to combat the violence.

“For the hot spots that have been posted, this is the largest number we’ve seen so far since 1992 in terms of the number of election-related hot spots.”

“There has been great concern on the part of the local population about the ability or ability of our security agencies to do a good job and ensure that we have peaceful elections.

There is a significant trust deficit between political parties in terms of the security of the Ghana police service and the security agencies involved, “he said.