Visually impaired man chairs Ayawaso West Wuogon IPDC

Mr Love Babanawo, a visually impaired person, has been elected as the chairman of the Ayawaso West Wuogon's Inter-Party Dialogue Committee (IPDC), inaugurated by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE).Mr Babanawo called for the support and collaboration of the committee and stakeholders to prevent potential conflicts and promote tolerance towards peaceful general elections.The IPDC has representatives of political parties, traditional authorities, youth groups, persons with disabilities, the municipal assembly, and the police, among others.Mrs Lydia Agyir, the Ayawaso West Municipal Electoral Officer, took the committee members through the laid-down processes and producers towards the December 2024 general elections.Speaking under the NCCE's 2024 theme 'Together We Can Build Ghana, So Lets Get Involved,'' Mr Edem Afeeva, the Ayawaso West Municipal Director of the NCCE, said IPDC was established at the regional and district levels as a proactive measure to foster peaceful elections and ens ure political stability in the country.Mr Afeeva stated that 'this move by the NCCE aligns with William Greider's opinion that democracy begins in human conversation; a democratic conversation does not require elaborate rules of procedure or utopian notions of perfect consensus; what it does require is a spirit of mutual respect-people conversing critically with another in an atmosphere of honesty and shared regard.'He said it was expected that the committee members would respect divergent views and be tolerant in their engagements, stressing that free, fair, and peaceful general elections could only be achieved by extensive voter education on placing the peace of the country above every sectional or parochial interest.He explained that the IPDC was expected to meet regularly, at least once every month before the election day, in addition to emergency meetings, to deliberate on issues that could affect the peaceful conduct of the elections.He stressed that the mandate of the IPDC included defusing int entions that could escalate into violence and engaging stakeholders in resolving inter- and intra-party disagreements that could potentially affect the upcoming elections.He added that they would embark on social events such as sporting activities and street processions, which would involve all political parties, faith-based groups, and other stakeholders, as well as help to monitor and resolve cases of breach of rules and regulations relating to the conduct of the elections and the maintenance of public order.He reiterated that the NCCE's stance was that all engagements of the committee shall be non-partisan, adding that the commission's main focus was to tap on the expertise and abilities of the IPDC members to promote peace before, during, and after the December 2024 general elections.Mr Afeeva mentioned that the commission, per the law that mandates it, promises to regulate the affairs of the committee apolitically in order to ensure that each member's view is considered and respected in a manner th at is befitting of a committee that is a brainchild of the NCCE.Source: Ghana News Agency