A great opportunity beckons Ghana
The President, Mr John Mahama, at the observance of the prayer at the Black Star Square in Accra, reiterated the need for peaceful co-existence, so that we could build a better Ghana in which everybody’s concerns would be taken care of.
The Chief Iman, Sheikh Nuhu Sharubutu, at the same event, impressed on all Muslim leaders and the faithful to preserve the peace after the Supreme Court had delivered its verdict on the election petition even if the verdict did not sit well with them.
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, joined Muslims in Kumasi in a symbolic show of solidarity to demonstrate to the whole country that our bond as one people with a common destiny is stronger than our religious differences.
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The acting Ameer of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission, Alhaji Maulvi Muhammed Yusif Yawson, reminded Ghanaians that what united them was greater than the little things that seemingly created divisions among the people.
Our leaders are united in one voice against anything that has the tendency to derail the peace and stability of the country.
It is always good to admonish people to respect the values that contribute to harmonious relationship in our society.
However, mere exhortations which are not backed by action are not good enough because the sages say example is better than precept.
The Daily Graphic calls on all our leaders to go a step further to compel their followers to respect the clarion call for peace at this critical time in our national life.
The message of peace is not being preached by only our leaders, religious and temporal, but also the security agencies which, last Wednesday, demonstrated their readiness to maintain the peace in case of any eventuality.
The remarks that greeted the route march by the security agencies on the social media platform were not all complimentary, as some of the commentators wondered whether the country was on the brink of war.
Some campaign messages can be tailored specifically to arouse fear, but we know that in certain cases fear arousal messages are not able to bring about behavioural changes.
That is why, going forward, the security agencies ought to communicate their intentions better to the public in order to carry members of the public along with the objective of the exercise.
Be that as it may, we also need to prepare adequately for the deviants in society who may want to derail the democratic architecture we have toiled to craft, to the envy or admiration of our neighbours on the continent.
Ghanaians should realise by now that the extreme politicisation of issues does not benefit anybody and that the divisions poison the atmosphere for investment, particularly from the international community. The winner-takes-all policy is divisive and must stop in the interest of national unity, peace and cohesion.
The Daily Graphic thinks Ghanaians have, in the words of Mr Kofi Annan, a former UN Secretary General, a ‘Second Chance’ to come out of the election petition a stronger nation as one people with a common destiny.
There is a lot to learn from our experiences, only if we play by the rules, even if the verdict does not go our way.
Daily Graphic/Ghana
