The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has justified its refusal to sign a proposed peace agreement that would encourage political parties to behave peacefully in the general elections scheduled for December 7.
The initiative’s steering body, the Peace Council, has come under fire from the NDC for failing to establish an inclusive and balanced environment that encourages equitable participation from all political parties.
The party feels that the Peace Council has not adequately engaged with all stakeholders or addressed problems crucial to guaranteeing election fairness, despite the fact that its flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, publicly reiterated his commitment to peace at the start of the NDC’s National Peace Campaign.
The NDC’s Deputy General Secretary, Mustapha Gbande, clarified the party’s concerns, pointing out that important state agencies, like the police, Electoral Commission, military, and national security agencies, play vital roles in upholding peace and must act as neutral entities.
He raised worries about whether this neutrality would be properly upheld and underlined that these institutions are in charge of ensuring a free, fair, transparent, and peaceful voting process.
“Institutions of states such as the police, the Electoral Commission, the military, national security. All of these individual institutions play a role, a frontal role, to ensure that they actually are referees to everything that is been done for peace to prevail. NDC is committed to peace. President Mahama is committed to peace.
“But as to whether we believe that the Peace Council’s peace pact is something that has gotten to a standard involving all stakeholders. We don’t think that the Peace Council has done a good job. We don’t think that they have helped this country because people have died out of the 2020 election and they did nothing.”
