Bawku (U/E),- The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) says tolerance is the pivot to building and sustaining peaceful coexistence in Ghana for accelerated development.
It said there could not be meaningful development without peace and urged Ghanaians to cultivate the virtue of tolerance as key ingredient to ensure that the prevailing peace was maintained.
Mr Pontius Pilate Baba Apaabey, the Upper East Regional Director of the NCCE said this at Bawku in the Upper East Region at a youth engagement on curbing violent extremism, organized by the Commission with support from the European Union (EU).
It was on the theme, “Preventing Electoral Violence and providing Security to the Northern Border Regions of Ghana (NORPREVSEC)” and it brought together youth activists from youth groups across the Bawku Municipality.
The engagement was to create awareness among the youth on identifying early warning signals of activities of violent extremists and the youth could work to foster peace and unity in their respective communities.
It was also to equip the youth with relevant information and requisite skills to identify and fight transnational organized crimes while promoting respect for human rights and the rule of law to deepen democratic governance in Ghana.
The Regional Director urged the youth to respect each other’s views and avoid unnecessary arguments that could trigger conflict adding, “irrespective of tribe, colour, clan or religion, we are one, let us not forget that before gaining any other identity, we are humans first”, he said.
Mr Daniel Baya Laar, the Bawku Municipal Director for NCCE noted that young people were vulnerable and violent extremists such as terrorists’ groups took advantage of that vulnerability to recruit them to perpetuate violence.
He admonished the youth to use their energies to promote peaceful coexistence and do away with all forms of radicalism that may derail the prevailing peace and bring development to a halt.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Mr Simon Peter Akabati, the Bawku Municipal Police Commander, said curbing violent extremism and ensuring security was a shared responsibility and encouraged Ghanaians to report any suspicious characters to the police for investigation and action.
Source: Ghana News Agency