Without peace it would be foolhardiness to have elections in Bawku - Ndebugre

Accra, June 25, GNA - Mr John Ndebugre, Member of Parliament (MP) for Zebilla, on Wednesday said until peace was restored to Bawku, it would be "foolhardiness" to allow people in the area to take part in Election 2008.

Describing the crisis in the area as a "law and order issue", he said campaigning and elections were going to be seriously affected by the breakdown of law in the area.

Mr Ndebugre was responding to questions from the Parliamentary Press Corps after reading out a joint statement by the five MPs in the Bawku area at a press briefing at Parliament House. He said the Vice Presidential candidate of the NDC, Mr Jonh Mahama on his recent visit to the Upper East Region could not take his campaign to the Bawku area because of the conflict.

The conflict broke out late last year leading to the death of many people including 11 people, who were killed last Saturday. Earlier, in the statement, put together by MPs from Zebilla, Bawku Central, Binduri, Garu-Tempane and the Pusiga constituencies, Mr Ndebugre recounted the latest outbreak of violence this month in which a man was killed as he went to seek his stray horse and the subsequent killing of women and children, in what appeared to be a retaliatory attack by persons dressed in military uniforms. The statement said the situation had become a law and order issue and condemned the use of military uniforms by unauthorized persons for criminal purposes.

It called for a resolute action by the State and urged the National Peace Council to find a lasting solution to the crisis. Meanwhile, Dr Kwame Addo Kufuor, Interior Minister, has told Parliament that the National Peace Council was meeting with Leader from Bawku to solve the crisis.

He was responding to a question on plans to set up early warning systems at insecurity flash points in the country.

He said the Government had developed and adopted the National Architect for Peace under which an Early Warning and Analysis Centre was to be established at the Ministry of The Interior. ""Mr Speaker, it is our expectation that by the end of the year 2008, the Early Warning and Analysis Centre will be fully operational generating qualitative analysis of threat indicators and the passing on of information for timely action by the relevant agencies," Dr Addo Kufuor said.