Election 2012� Girl, 8, Cries For Peace

Angela Mensah, an 8-year-old peace ambassador from the Morning Angels International School, a private school located at Dome in the Greater Accra Region, yesterday launched a campaign dubbed �Ghana for Peace, Peace for All,� in Accra. The campaign was aimed at preaching peace to citizens, all stakeholders and politicians alongside urging them to desist from politics of insults and the use of foul language before, during and after the 2012 general election. Addressing the gathering, little Angela Mensah bemoaned the practice and called for urgent steps to nip it in the bud. According to her, if pragmatic measures were not taken to avert this alarming situation it could go a long way to injure the integrity and image of the country. Against this backdrop, she cautioned media houses and journalists to desist from the habit of giving platforms to unscrupulous politicians to make comments that could lead the country into an unfortunate state. She was of the strong opinion that Ghana has an enviable record in conducting successful General elections, saying the whole world is therefore watching and expecting peaceful and transparent elections. She however argued that the negative effects of electoral violence in other countries, the politics of insults and name calling, and pockets of violence and confusion brewing in some polling stations in the on-going biometric voter registration exercise, gives credence for peace loving Ghanaians to be concerned. Angela Mensah pointed out that, credible figures have always shown that countries with incidence of electoral violence have women and children as the most vulnerable. She therefore urged politicians to desist from using children for jingles and adverts to win elections, since any adverse effect of the elections would affect children the most. Angela Mensah further added that as part of her campaign, she would embark on a nationwide tour during the weekends and vacations to appeal to all stakeholders in elections to help ensure peaceful elections this year and beyond. Miss Mensah averred that Ghanaians desire to live in a peaceful and stable country to achieve their dreams, and thus do not wish to be expatriates.