Veering Off Course

Only the Chairman of the Ghana Peace Council can tell Ghanaians the reason he would ignore the threat to Supreme Court judges and the survivability of the nation, preferring rather to dabble in the integrity of the promises made by selected political party leaders.

If the Peace Council has had another item on their terms of reference, we are yet to know.

The clergyman would obviously not do same to President John Mahama’s one-time National Health Insurance premium and other untenable promises: selective queries by a man whose mandate does not include such busybody engagements should be condemned.

The Most Rev Prof Emmanuel Asante, at a time when the country is brooding over the most serious airwave irresponsibility yet, would rather turn his attention and the Council’s to matters which do not in any way impugn upon the nation’s security and for that matter her peace.

Pretending to be busy or even working at his post should not push him into meddling in political issues: this can only present him as a target for political lambasting because then he would have become a politician – which he appears to be anyway.

What better assignment can the Peace Council engage in than the verbal nonsense spewed by the   young ruling party hawks recently, for which all well-meaning Ghanaians have been taken aback.

We can no longer remain silent over the rather selective nature of the Peace Council: the relevance of the Council is non-consequential; and we think candidly that the Chairman is almost behaving like he is obsessed with protecting the interests of a political party.

If the Council has not heard the garbage which was spewed on radio a few days ago triggering a national conversation, let it wake up from their Rip Van Winkle slumber. It is disappointing to watch a   state entity such as the Peace Council watching indifferently as irresponsible talk pushes the country to the brink.

Political parties have the responsibility to present their promises or manifestoes to the electorate so they can make informed decisions. It is not for the Peace Council to question the feasibility or otherwise of promises of parties. Have these got anything to do with the peace of the country?

Let the Peace Council under the direction of the   clergyman appreciate the fact that the Electoral Commission and the ruling NDC are singing from the same hymn book – a precursor for a credibility crisis ahead of the 2016 polls. Does he not see the anomalous situation and how this can be detrimental to the quality of the elections?

If the ruling party is his choice, he is entitled to his preference, but this should not influence his decisions and remarks, which have largely been skewed.

Truthfulness and sincerity are two attributes of the two great faiths, including the minor ones. It would be preposterous when a clergyman heading a critical organisation such as the Ghana Peace Council engages in subtle mischief.

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