Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth appeals for peace in election 2012

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth in the Upper West Region have appealed to Ghanaians and institutions mandated to supervise the December elections to perform their duties well to make the elections free, fair, transparent and peaceful.

The youth, who made the appeal during their annual conference in Jirapa, in the Jirapa District of the region, also called on their colleagues in other parts of the country not to allow themselves to be used by politicians as tools to perpetrate violence.

This year’s Ahmadiyya youth conference was on the theme: “The Role of the Ahmadiyya Youth towards a Peaceful and Transparent Election”.

Master Salih Shamsideen, Upper West Regional Ahmadiyya Youth Leader who made the appeal on behalf of his colleagues, said as Ahmadiyya youth, it behooved on them to protect the peace that they were currently enjoying in the country.

He called for mutual trust, tolerance and the spirit to accommodate one another despite their political and religious differences.

Maulvi Hamid Tahir, the Upper West Regional Missionary of the Ahmadiyya Mission encouraged all Ahmadiyya youth to see themselves as peace ambassadors and endeavour to send out the message of peace as their contribution towards making the 2012 elections more peaceful than previous ones.

He advised them against destroying campaign posters of political party candidates among other negative tendencies, to prevent trouble in the coming elections.

Mr. Cezar Kale, Deputy Upper West Regional Minister in a speech read on his behalf, said peace in the coming election could not be overemphasized and commended the Ahmadiyya youth for using their annual conference to preach peace before, during and after the elections.

He said government was determined to harness the potentials of the youth towards the building of a “Better Ghana” but noted that this could not be achieved in the absence of peace.

Mr. Kale therefore urged the Ahmadiyya youth to be guided by the values of the faith and use it to help bring about peace in the coming elections.

The Deputy Upper West Regional Minister also advised them to channel their energies towards productive ventures that would bring about development.

Mr. Abdul-Salam Sualih, President, North-West Region of the Ahmadiyya Mission, who spoke on the topic: “Politics and Islam: the Role of the Ahmadi Youth,” stated that if politics was about nation building then no one could say Islam had nothing to do with politics.

He said it was only when politics is turned into the politics of alignment, propaganda, hatred and corruption that Islam is exempted from it.**