National Enforcement Body cautions politicians

The National Enforcement Body (NEB) of the 2012 Political Parties Code of Conduct, on Monday cautioned politicians to desist from politicizing the inter-ethnic and communal clashes sweeping through the country.

In a statement copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra, it stated, “Inter-ethnic clashes themselves lead to undesirable effects,Politicizing them will only inflame passions which may derail peaceful elections in December.

“With barely six months to the General Elections, the NEB is reminding political parties that their activities are being monitored to ensure that they comply with the provisions of the Code of Conduct.”

The NEB, however commended the political parties for adhering to the Code of Conduct which culminated in a peaceful atmosphere during the just ended Mop-up Biometric Registration Exercise.

It noted that the Mop-up Biometric Voters Registration Exercise was generally peaceful and orderly, saying that activities of violence that characterized the initial exercise were absent.

Political Parties are therefore, being urged to continue to adhere to the Code of Conduct as Election 2012 draws near, the statement said.

The NEB was established by IEA with the approval of the political parties, with the mandate to monitor their conduct as well as their supporters to ensure they behave in the manner that is expected of them as enshrined in the Code of Conduct.

In addition, it has the mandate to reprimand any political party that engages in undemocratic electioneering activity, which has the propensity to endanger the peace and stability of the country.

The NEB is tasked to awaken the political parties to the fact that their electioneering activities are being monitored and any party that violates the Code will be tagged as a “violent party,” and named and shamed in the newspapers and on the air waves.

The Most Reverend Professor Emmanuel Asante, Chairman of National Peace Council, heads the enforcement body with Mr. Justice Francis Emile Short, Former Commissioner of Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), Dr. Maulvi Wahab Adam, Ameer and Head of Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission and Ms. Hillary Gbedemah, Law Institute as members.

Other members are Mr. Ransford Tetteh, President of Ghana Journalists Association; Rev. Father Patrick M. Amos, National Catholic Secretariat; Mr Paul Manly Awini, Director of Operations, Ghana Police Service; Mrs Augustina Akosua Akumanyi, Deputy Chairman National Commission for Civic Education and Mr. David Adeenze-Kangah, Former Deputy Chairman of Electoral Commission.

The rest are Mr. Danny Annan, National Democratic Congress (NDC); Mr Abdulai Fulamba, New Patriotic Party (NPP); Mr. Kwame Jantuah, Convention People’s Party (CPP); Mr. Atik Mohammed, People's National Convention (PNC); and Mr. George Dowokpor, Progressive Peoples Party (PPP).**