Most Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante lecturing
Most Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante, Chairperson of the National Peace Council (NPC) has disclosed that there are currently over 200 internal conflicts cases throughout the country.
These conflicts, he said, border mostly around issues of wrongful appropriation of natural resources-land and mining concessions and accession trends to chieftaincy.
According to him, the issue had been compounded by the manipulation and misinterpretation of ethnicity by political parties.
Lecture
Speaking at the “Koomson/Ackah/Enchia” inaugural lecture in Accra organized by the Association of Methodist Men’s Fellowship in support of peaceful elections on the theme: “Now Praise We Great and Famous Men”, the NPC chairperson stated that the effectiveness of conflict management in the country depends upon the efficient functioning of the architecture for peace.
He said the architectural design of the NPC emphasizes the government’s paradigm shift from the law and order based approach to conflict management and peace building to an approach that seeks more participatory and durable solutions to issues of violent conflicts within the various regions and districts.
Most Rev. Asante indicated that men and women who propagated Christianity have contributed towards the peace and development through the propagation of the gospel of peace and reconciliation, the introduction of formal education and other social services.
“…This is to say that Christianity and for that matter religion in Ghana has been advantageous rather than ruinous to the promotion of justice and peace in the country” he argued.
Politics
On politics, the Man of God blamed politicians in the country over the ‘winner takes all’ kind of politics which he insists had militated against Ghana’s “peace and development”.
He maintained that there were people who just go for positions based on partisan or ethnic considerations when they know they cannot deliver the goods.
He stated that such office holders having benefitted from the winner takes all syndrome “make a mess and create problems for themselves” adding that “we don’t want square pegs in round holes, we need to dream of a country where the well being of the individual will be informed by the well being of all.”
Most Rev. Asante was of the view that it was unfortunate the citizens sit on tenterhooks anytime election was approaching.
He stated that Ghana’s choice for multi-party democracy as a system of government meant to unite had rather “divided us” because Ghanaians are not tolerant.
Earlier, Most Rev. Titus Awotwi Pratt, the Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church-Ghana, launching the annual lecture said the personalities in whose memory the event had been organized were men of courage and vision.
By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson