Accra, March 23, Accra - The Knighthood Forum of the Catholic Church=

has expressed concern about "the increasing indiscipline at all levels of=

the society" and said it was the duty of all citizens to help preserve pe= ace in the country. The Forum, that comprises the Knights of Marshall and the Knights of St John International, said in a communiqu=E9 at the end of its meeting in A= ccra that there had been lack of respect even to the extent of bringing the Presidency into disrepute.

The communiqu=E9 said there was seeming breakdown of law and order resulting in acts of impunity at all levels that go unpunished. "The most dangerous, if not shameful, are occurrences of hate mongering, inciteful and ethnocentric pronouncements, pursuit of a vendet= ta agenda, utter intolerance of opposing views and other such negative tendencies which our dear nation is fed with through our media almost on daily basis." It said there had been politicization of chieftaincy and this promot= es polarization, leading to violence with loss of lives and expressed their displeasure against people who call themselves pastors committing despica= ble and nauseating acts.

The Forum appealed to all Ghanaians to stand up and speak against thes= e potentially volatile and unsavoury divisive tendencies that are gaining ground in the society. "We of the Knighthood Forum wish to share our concerns with the leadership of political parties of our dear country as well as our traditional rulers and invite them to have nothing short of Ghana in all they think and do." The communiqu=E9 appealed to citizens to be circumspect in their pronouncements in the media, especially in the electronic medium. The Forum said the President should be accorded all the respect due h= is person and office by all and the President should act swiftly at all time=

with fairness and justice.

It appealed to the President to ensure that state institutions are held fully accountable for the mandate for which they were established, adding that the law must be made to work. "Similarly, we request that former occupants of the highest office o= f our land must also be accorded all the respect due that office. We appea= l to such personalities of honour to so conduct themselves so as to be seen= by all, including the international community, as true statesmen." The Knights said for Ghana to continue to be the oasis of peace and beacon of hope of Africa, it behoves on not only political and traditiona= l leadership but also everyone to cultivate a deep sense of tolerance of ea= ch other and of opposing views, respect for authority as well as of law and order.

They appealed to those with access to the media to realise that the=

media are powerful tools that could do good and yet cause harm. "They, therefore, must at all time bear in mind that they hold the k= ey to either bringing about unity for the well-being of our nation or causin= g havoc, the consequences of which can be catastrophic to all." The Forum commended the law enforcement agencies for the good work in fighting armed robbery in recent times and urged to be professional in th= e discharge of their duties without fear or favour by bringing to book any one falling foul of the law.

The communiqu=E9 appealed to traditional leaders to appreciate and encourage unity in diversity. "It is our hope that as our rulers, they will allow restraint and pe= ace to prevail in any intra or inter tribal misunderstandings that have unfortunately reared up in our society," it said.