Do Not Plunge Ghana into Conflict - Trans4orm Calls on NPP/NDC


Mr. Vincent Azumah of Trans4orm Ghana has called on leaders of the two main political parties in Ghana, to refrain from making utterances that might unnecessarily heighten tensions in the country ahead of the 2020 elections; declaring that “It is not healthy”. “This appeal also goes to the media and especially those media houses who take delight in creating unnecessary tension with headlines such as “Nana jabs Mahama”, “Mahama fires back”. As partners for peace, let’s all work together in our small ways to maintain the peace Ghana has enjoyed so far,” he emphasised. “Let the 2020 elections further consolidate Ghana’s enviable credentials and not break the country apart.” Mr. Vincent Azumah, Founder and Chairman of the Board of Advisors of Trans4orm Network, Ghana and also the West Africa Regional Coordinator, Research, Monitoring and Evaluation of WANEP, made this known during the launch of the “Strengthening Early Warning and Conflicts Response During Ghana Elections” Project and Project Inception Meeting with National Leadership of Political Parties and Stakeholders in Accra

According to the Trans4orm leader, from January to the end of October in 2019, there were 80 armed robbery cases in Ghana. There were also 69 murders, 93 road accidents, 24 abductions including kidnappings, 20 flood cases, 12 violent demonstrations and 18 illegal mining cases that turned violent. The level of violence in 2020 is no different.

“This level of violence in the country which is being contained at the moment can degenerate to far more volatile levels if we allow our elections to become another source of violence instead of an avenue to trade ideas on national issues and to select the best leaders for Ghana,” Mr Azumah said.

The “Strengthening Early Warning and Conflicts Response During Ghana Elections” Project is particularly designed to strengthen WANEP’s National Early Warning Systems (NEWS) and also aimed at enhancing the capacity of civil society and relevant state institutions to promote human security, conflict prevention and peacebuilding. It is being funded by the Government of Canada under the Canada Fund for Local Initiative (CFLI).

Mr Azumah said the West Africa Region had been bedevilled with a number of peace and security challenges. He said key among these challenges were organized crime and violent extremism, gender peace and security, environmental security, democracy and governance; adding that “Ghana is not and has not been immune to these challenges”.

Mr Azumah said in the Northern parts of Ghana, there had been a growing influx of refugees fleeing extremist attacks in Burkina Faso. He said from January to June 2019,

over 2000 Burkinabé refugees; mostly women and children had been registered and settled in communities in the Upper West Region. Mr. Albert Yelyang, National Network Coordinator, WANEP, said the project launch was a very key assignment towards proactiveness in preventing violence in an election that would probably be yet one of the most competitive in the fourth republic. He said the project aims at making sure that they were conscious of identifying the threats, conducting analysis, providing warning through reporting on the election-related dynamics, and responding to the warnings before they degenerate further. We intend to use this process to create and support a peaceful environment for electioneering that will encourage participation by all, he said. Professor Vladimir Antwi-Danso, a Security Analyst and Dean of Academic Affairs at the Ghana Armed Forces Command Staff College, urged Ghanaians to ensure that the country once again emerges victorious, as a shining example to the international community in the 2020 general election. Mr Pasquale Salvaggio, Political Counsellor, High Commission of Canada, said the success of any election would be attributed to the active participation of the citizenry of the nation.