Mr. Godwin Agbenyo, NCCE District Director Anloga addressed the Community on the topic and called on the citizenry to avoid all forms of violence and be the ambassadors of peace in everywhere they find themselves. He entreated them to protect the peace we are currently enjoying at all cost.
Mr. Agbenyo also mentioned a few things that help promote unity and national Cohesion:
- The boarding housing system currently run in Ghana will enable students from different ethnic and religious background to learn from one another hence promoting national unity.
- Encouraging inter-ethnic/ religious marriages through these marriages it is difficult for couples to hurt each other’s ethnic groups because they see themselves as one people with a common goal.
- Types of governance system, religious tolerance and sports also bring individuals together hence national cohesion.
He also advised the Community Members to be wary of the causes of disintegration or disunity as follows:
- Unemployment or when the youth have not been engaged in any meaningful work.
- Mistrust of institutions when there is no equal justice.
- When there is suppression of rights and freedoms.
District Director touched on the effects of absence of National Cohesion. Some of the points were external aggression, retarded development, undermines peace, instability, loss of foreign investment, disease, poverty, destruction of life and properties.
Furthermore, he tasked the Community Members to be security cautious especially the market women, taxi drivers and motor bikers whenever they are conveying passengers and luggage. They should live in harmony with others regardless of what their differences maybe.
DSP, Thomas Yaw Agbanyo also took his turn to educate the Dzita Community through the following Grievances Handling Procedures:
- Public Order Act, 1994 (Act, 491)
- Vigilantism and Related Offences Act, 2019 (Act, 999) and
- Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Mechanism.
He pointed it out to the Community members he did not write the laws but rather they (the citizenry of Ghana) did therefore this laws apply to everybody; political parties, religious bodies, groups, clubs, societies, drumming groups and so on. He did quote the laws from the book ‘Any person who desires to hold any special event within the meaning of this Act in any public place shall notify the police of his intention not less than 5 days before the date of the special event.’’ On the Vigilantism Act the law says “A person shall not directly or indirectly form, organize, operate or promote the formation or activities of a vigilante group”. Any person found guilty would be imprisoned not less than 10 years and not more than 15 years.
He advised the gathering not to engage in any activities of such unlawful groupings and tasked the Community leaders to look for hard working but honest persons to form Community surveillance and Neighborhood watch/ Community patrol.
The Police Commander also emphasized on the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Mechanism as the fastest means of settling dispute and misunderstanding in our communities and Ghana at large.
He also advised the community gathering not to take the laws in to their hands because an alleged person is deemed innocent until proven otherwise by a court of competent jurisdiction.
There were Two Hundred and Fifty-Two (252) participants that benefited from the programme comprising (114) males and (138) females.
