GUM calls for retrieval of civilian guns ahead of December 7 polls

The Ghana Union Movement (GUM) has appealed to the President to issue an Executive Instrument for the retrieval of all civilian guns ahead of the December 7 presidential and parliamentary elections.

The party proposed that the retrieval should encompass both registered and unregistered guns as part of broader measures to ensure peaceful elections.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, Reverend Christian Kwabena Andrews, the founder and flagbearer of GUM, stated that the incidence of violence recorded at some polling stations should serve as a wake-up call for the country.

He expressed concern over the absence of robust gun-control measures and appealed to political parties to utilize appropriate structures to resolve their grievances and safeguard the country's peace.

"I appeal to the President and even Parliament to pass a law to retrieve all guns, except those of the military. We do not want anyone to go to the polling station wielding guns on December 7. This election should be peaceful, and one of the ways to ensure that is to make sure that people do not get access to guns," Rev. Andrews said.

The GUM leader condemned the pockets of violence that have characterized the ongoing limited voters' registration exercise and urged all political parties and stakeholders to exercise restraint and respect the rules governing the exercise.

Reverend Andrews described the disturbances that occurred at Kukuom in the Ahafo Region during the ongoing exercise, which led to the injury of one person, as worrying.

"If people can carry machetes to a registration center, then that is very dangerous, and we should all condemn and stand up against such violent acts," he said, appealing to the police to take swift action against the perpetrators.

"If we fail to deal with the issue head-on and punish the perpetrators severely, people would be emboldened to do worse things during elections, and we do not want that to happen," Rev. Andrews added.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Police Service has condemned the violent incidents recorded at some registration centers in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise, which commenced on Tuesday, May 7, 2024.

In a statement, the police said they had made several arrests at various registration centers nationwide.

"The police would like to remind the public that the registration exercise is a civic responsibility that must be attended to in a civil manner. It is in this regard that we would like to caution the public to exercise maximum restraint and act in accordance with the laws governing the registration process," the police said.