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The Chairman of the National Peace Council (NPC), Most Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante Antwi, says the need for peace has become more important in Ghana now as elections are fiercely contested. He said most elections had become political hotbeds for conflicts, and that was what the NPC wanted to prevent. The chairman of the NPC stated this at the inauguration of a 13-member Ashanti Regional Peace Council in Kumasi last Monday. It was premised on the crucial role the council played during the 2012 general election in weathering the storm when Ghana was literally at a crossroads. According to Rev. Asante Antwi, Ghanaian youth were also becoming increasingly agitated over limited opportunities, with impunity eating into the very fabric of our society and the threat of extremism looming large over the sub-region. He said the council was neither the Electoral Commission nor a subset of the commission but interested in guarding Ghana�s young democracy and to promote peace. The Ashanti Regional Peace Council, which is yet to name its chairman, is made up of Rev. Father Patrick Osei-Poku from the Catholic Bishop Conference; Rev. Kofi Amfo-Akonnor, Christian Council; Apostle James Smith-Gyimah, the Ghana Pentecostal Council; Rev. Dr Victor Osei, National Council for Christian and Charismatic Churches; Mr Hakeem Baidoo, Ahamadiyya Muslim Mission; Shaikh Mohammed Kamil Mohammed, Al-Sunnah Muslims; Ustaz Ahmed Seidu, Tijaaniya Muslims; and Baffour Asabere Kogyawoasu Ababio II, a traditional ruler. The rest are Mrs Dorothy Danso, nominated by the Regional Co-ordinating Council; two other persons nominated by identified groups; Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Miss Harriet Takyi; Christian Chiefs and Queen-mothers Association; Nana Birago Ababio and one representatives of the Regional House of Chiefs, Barima Offe Akwasi Okogyeasuo II. The Most Rev. Prof. Asante Antwi said Ghana was seen as a relatively stable democracy and a peaceful haven in an otherwise troubled sub-region. �In spite of this international recognition, those of us who live in this country know that we are confronted with numerous chieftaincy disputes, political disputes, land and border disputes among a host of other troubles,� he said. The chairman said a conflict mapping exercise, carried out recently by the council in collaboration with the University of Cape Coast, indicated that every region in Ghana was challenged by numerous and diverse conflicts.