2024 Elections Commit to Peace Pact US Ambassador Appeals to Political Leaders

The US ambassador to Ghana, HE Virginia Palmer has asked Ghanaian political leaders to commit to a peace pact going into the 2024 elections.

According to her, Ghana’s democracy is too fragile to suffer any political bias from the various political parties.

Speaking briefly to the media at her residence at the breakfast and watch party for the 2024 U.S. Presidential Elections, she further added that they are committed to ensuring that Ghana has a free and fair elections.

Just like the American democracy, it has grown and it’s been sustained and we need to make sure that Ghana’s democracy suffer any political hitches.

She added that, "Ghana has come a long way with their democracy and we can’t look on for it to fall apart and we will ensure that this year’s elections is free and fair."

"I will employ on all political leaders especially the flagbearers and all the aspirants to commit to a peace pact either by signing a document or making a public declaration to peace."

The Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, has firmly stated that the party will not sign any peace pact that would leave its supporters vulnerable to extrajudicial killings again in the upcoming elections.

The NDC has refused to sign a peace pact to commit to peace in the December 7 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

During a meeting with the National Peace Council, the NDC Chairman outlined six conditions, including requiring the President, the Inspector-General of Police, the Chief Justice, the National Security Coordinator, and the Attorney-General to all sign the pact.

Despite Asiedu Nketiah’s strong stance, the National Peace Council remains optimistic that the NDC will eventually agree to sign the peace pact before the December elections.

However, Mr. Asiedu Nketiah stated the party’s reservations, reiterating specific conditions that must be met before the NDC would consider signing the peace agreement.

“We cannot ban the death sentence and then turn around to condone extrajudicial killings in this democracy,” Asiedu Nketiah declared.

"Considering the number of people killed since Akufo-Addo assumed power, if we do not pull the brakes on him, the killings will persist, and that will make democracy dysfunctional.”

He pointed to several incidents where, according to him, no justice has been served, including the deaths of three Members of Parliament and the violence during the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election.

“Three MPs have been killed, and nobody has been arrested. We went to a by-election at Ayawaso West Wuogon, and [Akufo-Addo] deployed hoodlums to shoot indiscriminately, killing and injuring people. Nobody has said anything,” he stated.

Asiedu Nketiah also criticized the government’s response to the Techiman South election violence, where eight people were reportedly killed.

“Eight people were killed in Techiman, and nobody has been held accountable,” he noted.


Isaac Kwame Owusu//[email#160;protected]