Gov’t assures of free, fair elections

Political page June 7/2008

Story: Charles Benoni Okine

THE government has reassured the international community of its commitment to conducting another free, fair and transparent elections come December, to maintain the peace and stability in the country.
It has also indicated its preparedness and the frantic efforts being made towards ensuring a smooth transition to the next administration.
The Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama, gave the assurance when a five-member Parliamentary delegation from the French National Assembly paid a courtesy call on him at the Castle, Osu, on Thursday.
“We continue to put measures in place to ensure that the peace that presently prevails in the country is not jeopardised before, during and after this crucial general election,” he said.
The delegation, which is being led by Mr Jean-Louis Christ, is on a fact-finding mission to see how best France and Ghana could improve their bilateral ties as part of the vision of the French President, Mr Nicholas Sarkozi.
Alhaji Mahama said since 1992, Ghana had been able to organise four general elections “and we have gained a lot of experience from that”.
He said the government was aware all political parties contesting the polls were determined to win and would, therefore, ensure that the elections were freely and fairly held to avoid bickering and petty squabbles.
“Ghana has become the icon of democracy on the continent and the whole world appreciates that,” Alhaji Mahama said.
He stated that with all eyes on Ghana, the government must not fail and indicated that nothing would be put to chance to mar the outcome of the elections.
“We have a reputation to protect and once our government strongly believes in the rule of law and democracy, we will have no excuse not to oversee a credible election,” he added.
Alhaji Mahama said Ghana had and continued to play a role in ensuring peace and stability in countries on the African continent, which have problems of stability.
He also mentioned the country’s peacekeeping efforts all over the world, and noted that “these efforts and commitments are evident enough to tell the international community that we will not do anything to jeopardise our fledgling democracy”.
When Mr Christ asked him about how Ghana was coping with its immediate neighbours, all of whom were Francophone countries, Alhaji Mahama said Ghana admitted that language difference but had managed to live in peace with all of them.
“We dialogue and share ideas constantly to ensure that we understand each other at all times and this has helped all of us,” he said.
Alhaji Mahama said the teaching of French in schools from the basic level was a must, expressing the hope that France would do more to assist the country in the smooth teaching and learning of the language to enhance communication with its neighbours.
He said Ghana was aware of the support that the French government was giving to the Francophone countries and urged the French government to extend similar assistance to the country, particularly in the area of agriculture, to boost food production.
Alhaji Mahama said more than 65 per cent of the labour force in the country was in agriculture, noting that any further support to boost the sector would help create more jobs for the people and push Ghana towards attaining food security.
He said the government, for its part, would continue to ensure that agriculture was mechanised.
“We have imported and distributed some tractors to the farmers to improve their farming methods,” the Vice President added.
Alhaji Mahama said following the recent global food crisis, the government had announced a package for farmers, including the provision of fertilisers at highly subsidised price.
He commended France for the debt forgiveness when Ghana went HIPC in 2001 and indicated that the bond of friendship between the two countries had grown over the years.
“We will continue to do things to keep the flames of the friendship burning,” he added.
Mr Christ, for his part, said the mission of the delegation was a fact-finding one and commended the Vice President for the vivid and candid information he had given about Ghana.
Mr Christ, who was accompanied to the Castle by the French Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Pierre Jacquemot, praised Ghana for its role in ensuring peace on the continent and for its courage to submit itself to the Africa Peer Review Mechanism.
Ghana was the first African country to submit itself to the African Peer Review Mechanism a couple of years ago, a move which has been hailed by many governments all over the globe.