NGO Reminds Politicians Of Their Commitment To Peace

Mrs Angela Dwamena Aboagye, Executive Director of Ark Foundation, Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), yesterday appealed to Ghanaians to sustain the peace currently prevailing in the country after Election 2012. She said: �I am grateful that God had brought the country this far, and no matter the aftermath of the elections, God had brought us together and we must protect the peace we are enjoying now.� Mrs Aboagye was speaking at the end of a project dubbed: �The Nuisance project- Young Women Speak To Power�, organised by the Foundation towards ensuring that Ghanaians were committed to peace during the 2012 elections and beyond. Thirty young women were trained under the project to take the mantle as agents of peace during and after the electioneering. The 14-month project that was funded by STAR-Ghana, was aimed at creating the platform for young women to advocate peace before, during and after the 2012 elections. The Executive Director commended the staff of the Foundation for their commitment to work, and advised the participants of the project to keep preaching peace wherever they found themselves. �Don�t lose your voices, we need you�.. anytime women issues are not put in the lime light, do not lose hope� when we stop talking about women�s rights, taboos that intimidate women, it slips�please don�t lose your voices. �We are looking up to you to be the generators that hold the torch, and we expect that you send our collective efforts to a different angle� so don�t let your voices go down,� she said. Ms Bernice Sam, the Project Evaluator, said the initiative, which was organised in the Ashanti, Eastern and the Great Accra Regions, was creative, innovative and as well as informative, and impacted on targeted beneficiaries. She said focusing on young women was a conscious strategy, which formed a testing ground for them to perform creditably, and congratulated the Foundation for its vision and creativity. Ms Sam said although there were no activities specifically for people with disabilities and people living with HIV/AIDS, some of these people might have benefitted in the various activities that took place at the three selected regions. Madam Mercy Oddoye, Director, Institute of Women and Culture, advised Ghanaians to avoid reckless talk. She appealed to the youth to use the social media to galvanise and maintain the peace instead of using it to fan wars. �To our politicians and aspiring politicians, power is about service and you must know that you are accountable to those who elected you. You need to be honest and sincere to the people in order to keep the peace,� said Madam Oddoye.