Taking bribes and committing one’s self to vote for a particular party or person, has been cited as one of the major factors that account for the high numbers of rejected ballots during election periods.
The Municipal Director of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) in-charge of the Kassena-Nankana Municipal, Mr Paul Kwame Ganvu, said this at a workshop on the theme, “Empowering women as agents of peace towards 2016 general elections”, held at Navrongo in the Upper East Region.
The event, which was organized by the Our Lady of Mercy Community Services (OLAM) and sponsored by the Open Society Initiative for West Africa(OSIWA)- Senegal, was aimed at exposing members of the Kaana Manga Women Association and Queen Mothers to the electoral laws to empower them to advocate for peace in the upcoming general election.
According to the Municipal Director, because some people take multiple bribes from the Presidential and Parliamentary aspirants, and commit themselves to vote for those parties, some voters vote for all the candidates on the ballot sheets instead of voting for one candidate for fear for being punished by the gods.
He entreated the stakeholders to educate the electorate in their respective communities that such acts were unlawful and against the electoral rules of Ghana and anybody caught would be dealt with.
Mr Ganvu said it was against the electoral laws to embark upon political campaign on the voting day, and urged the women to educate their constituents.
He also urged them to desist from distracting the electoral officers from their duties during the voting.
He said political tolerance was necessary in any democratic dispensation because it promoted mutual respect among the political parties.
He encouraged the people to participate effectively in the political process without fear and intimidation, as well as help to promote peaceful co-existent and freedom of liberty.
Mr Emmanuel Atiiga, the Project Director of OLAM, asked the women to take up the role of ensuring that they helped to protect and preserve the peace the country was enjoying.
The President of the Kaana Manga Women Association, Madam Victoria Asuliwono, on behalf of the group, pledged that they would embark on a house to house campaign, to educate their communities to ensure that the election process was not marred.
She said the radio programmes on peace and reproductive health by the group would continue unabated
“We shall also use platforms such as the market places, outdooring, the mosque and the church to preach on the need for peace before, during and after the election,” she assured.
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(Via: NewsGhana)
