Afede calls on stakeholders to work for peaceful elections

Togbe Afede XIV, Agbogbome Fia of Asogli and President of the Volta Regional House of Chiefs, has stressed the need for all stakeholders to ensure that the December Elections are peaceful, fair and transparent.

He appealed to political parties to refrain from cheating because that could breed electoral disturbances.

Togbe Afede, said this when the new Volta Regional Minister, Mr Henry Ford Karmel and Mr Henry Ametefe, the new Volta Regional Deputy Minister, paid a courtesy call on him at Ho, on Monday.

He expressed the concern of chiefs of the Volta Region about commotions being reported at some of the biometric registration centres and expressed the hope that, these happenings were not precursors of what would happen during the elections.

Togbe Afede, said the 2012 general election should be organized to stand as the most peaceful and pledged that, the chiefs of the Volta Region would actively work towards that realization.

He urged local politicians to work in the interest of the people they represented and not only remember them when elections were due.

Togbe Afede, noted that, while the chiefs and people appreciated the work of these appointees, they had concerns and frustrations which, when voiced out, must be taken in good faith.

He said the chiefs had been working hard to see the Region develop faster as evidenced in the vanguard role they played in establishing a sister-relationship between the Volta Region and Ningxia-Hui Province in China.

Togbe Afede said, a delegation from the health and agricultural sectors of that Chinese Province would visit the Volta Region shortly for discussions on cooperation and investments.

Mr Karmel said he would bring the people into tandem with his vision of faster development for the region on all fronts.

He said, there were apprehensions of the people on the development of the Region, which could be as a result of a gap in communication between the people and the Government.

Mr Benjamin Kpodo, National Democratic Congress (NDC) Parliamentary Candidate for Ho Central, also introduced himself to Togbe Afede.**