The youth in the Tain Constituency of the Brong Ahafo Region are angry with the Electoral Commission (EC) for labeling their constituency as a flashpoint.
It would be recalled that some few weeks ago, the EC came out with a list of 81 flashpoints in the country that need to be carefully monitored in this year’s general elections.
Tain Constituency, which became the decider of the 2008 election, was included in the list.
The electoral body said a flashpoint could easily degenerate into violence during the elections.
A statement signed by Nana Yaw Boapong, the spokesman of the group and Osei Yaw Seth and Mensah Kwadwo, communicators of the group and released yesterday to the press at Tain, said “Tain has never witnessed election related violence ever, so the tagging of Tain as a flashpoint raises eyebrows in the entire constituency or district. This labeling has downgraded us as peace-loving people.
“We will be seen as lawless and violent people, which is frivolous.
However, none of that degenerated into violence so we wonder why the EC labeled the constituency as flashpoint this time round.
The concerned youth indicated that they were aware of some electoral fraud that took place in the constituency during the 2008 and 2012 elections.
They therefore called on the EC to come out with the criteria it used in the determination of the list of flashpoints in the country.
Nana Yaw Boapong said “we were able to promote peace even during the volatile 2008 election but today we are being labeled as violent people.
“For tagging our constituency as violent, we believe it will unreasonably and unjustifiably retard development in our area which we totally disagree and refute, the statement said.
According to them, the EC wants to use the police to intimidate us to enable the NDC to once again rig the 2016 general elections.
FROM Daniel Y Dayee Nsawkaw