NCCE BEMOANS STATE OF INSECURITY IN BAWKU (PAGE 46, MAY 13, 2010)

THE Upper East Regional Director of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Mr Peter H. Mensah, has expressed concern over the current insecurity in Bawku, resulting from the protracted conflicts there.
He has also bemoaned the role of the youth in the violence due to the potential long-term negative effect on society.
Mr Mensah expressed the concern during the launch of the Upper East Regional Constitution Week in Bolgatanga. It was on the theme: “Enhancing constitutionalism through effective citizens’ participation for good governance”.
Traditional leaders, assembly members, heads of departments, educationists and NCCE officials attended the launch.
Activities earmarked for the celebration include roundtable discussions on the Constitution, constitutional game competition in schools, civic education activities in schools, social auditing in the communities, radio talk-shows and face-to-face interaction with various segments of society.
Mr Mensah noted that the continuous killing of people in the Bawku municipality, which had necessitated the imposition of a curfew and other harsh social restrictions, had made it difficult for any activity to be carried out in the area.
He appealed to the authorities to create the opportunity for the NCCE, as an exclusive entity, to play a mainstream role in the peace-building efforts, using its civic education method of intervention.
He explained that when given the chance, the NCCE would target the youth, who were obviously the main perpetrators of the violence.
He also requested the regional and national houses of chiefs, who were mandated by the Constitution to deal with issues related to the chieftaincy institution, to step in, as a matter of responsibility, with relevant interventionary measures.
Mr Mensah renewed appeals to the feuding factions and all other stakeholders — political, opinion, religious, traditional and youth leaders — as well as ordinary citizens in the Bawku municipality to create conditions that would offer opportunities to facilitate the promotion of peace.
“For example, religious groups could hold conventions and intercessory prayers in Bawku. Apart from God’s intervention, this move can also soften the hardened hearts of the belligerents,” the NCCE boss posited.
The Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Mark Owen Woyongo, noted that in spite of some deficiencies observed in the Constitution, Ghana was still adjudged one of the best countries practising the multi-party democratic system of governance in Africa.
He added that the government would show more commitment by ensuring that portions of the Constitution found to be inconsistent with the promotion and enhancement of democracy and good governance in the country were reviewed and refined, hence the setting up of the Constitutional Review Commission.
Later, during a lecture on the topic, “Poverty — A threat to constitutionalism and multi-party democracy in Ghana”, Mr Jonathan Adabre, a policy analyst and Regional Manager of ISODEC, noted that the institution of comprehensive integrated social protection systems was the only way to increase citizens’ participation in multi-party democracy.