The National Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has set specific conditions that the party insists must be met before considering signing the Peace Pact being advocated by the National Peace Council in anticipation of the December 7 elections.
Johnson Asiedu Nketia, doubted the effectiveness of past Peace Pacts, stating that they had not achieved their intended outcomes, referencing the 2020 elections, during which eight NDC members were killed by national security operatives without accountability.
At a meeting yesterday with the National Peace Council at the NDC headquarters in Accra, Mr Nketia, gave conditions for the NDC’s participation in the Peace Pact.
The NDC, is demanding that the recommendations from the investigation into the violence during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election be fully implemented.
They also want those responsible for election-related violence in the last election to be prosecuted, stressing the importance of justice and prevention.
The opposition party is also calling for accountability regarding irregularities in the printing of ballot papers and insists that visible measures be taken to prevent such issues from happening again.
They are also pushing for a thorough investigation into the missing IT equipment from the Electoral Commission’s (EC) warehouse, expressing concerns about the integrity of the EC’s systems and the potential bias of its staff.
Furthermore, the NDC is urging the President to publicly commit to respecting the results of the 2024 elections.
Lastly, the party insists that the Peace Pact should be signed by key figures, including the Inspector General of Police, the Chief Justice, the Attorney-General, and the National Security Coordinator before they will consider signing it themselves.
The National Peace Council, appealed to political parties to eliminate any animosity and agree to forge peace as the general elections approach.
Speaking on behalf of the council at a meeting, Maulvi Mohammed Bin Salih emphasised that peace should prevail.
“For us to be able to do that we will need your cooperation. For us to be able to do that we will need some amount of goodwill, [and] trust, for us members of the committee. So with that goodwill and trust we will be very much encouraged to do the best that we can,” he said.
The National Chairman of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, stated that his party is not ready to “let bygones be bygones,” insisting that President Akufo-Addo must openly declare his commitment to respecting the outcome of the 2024 elections.
He emphasized that the NDC, would not participate in any peace agreement, until the recommendations from the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence investigation are fully implemented
