Mr Kofi Asamaoh, General Secretary of the Trades Unions Congress (TUC), at the weekend urged Ghanaian Workers to promote peace and tranquility in the country in the run-up to the December polls.

He indicated that workers in the country had the responsibility of ensuring peace in the country in spite of the unnecessary tension that have been generated by some individuals in recent times.

He noted that the TUC has a mandate of ensuring that workers rights and aspirations were promoted to generate maximum output, adding that, the union’s contribution to national development was to encourage its members to promote peace to develop the nation.

Mr Asamoah was speaking at the Bolgatanga District Council of Labour stakeholders meeting. It was to interact and solicit concerns of workers and to educate them on the need to ensuring peace in the country.

He noted that almost everything in the country has been reduced to partisan politics, making it difficult for issues bordering on national interest to be discussed and solutions found.

He further stated that “individuals shouldn’t see this year’s election as a do or die affair”, and said Ghana has conducted series of successful elections in the past making her a beacon of peace in the sub-region.

He said if caution was not taken, as a result of the use of intemperate language by some individuals in the political divide, the country could be put into a state of pandemonium and said “it is only when peace prevails that we can work as working people and promote productivity for the country”.

Mr Asamoah called on Ghanaians to be tolerant and live peacefully devoid of the use of vulgar language that would eventually incite unwarranted passions in the country.

He called on them to register in the biometric voters registration exercise as a first step in exercising their constitutional rights to vote during election, and refrain from registration malpractices.

He stated that under the banner of the International Labour Organization, all member states are expected to indulge in a decent work agenda.

This he said has four pillars including, job creation by all member countries, ensuring the enforcement and protection of workers’ rights, social protection and social dialogue.

He noted that every year, about 250,000 potential workforces enter the labour market in the country but are unable to find jobs, adding that, the public sector, which used to provide adequate jobs for the teeming unemployed graduates in the country was no more.

“Government has the responsibility of intervening in job creation on a mass scale, otherwise the huge unemployment situation propels a great danger and undermines the democratic dispensation of the country” he added.

On the Single Spine Salary Structure, Mr Asamoah noted that the union had since 2006 been involved in the salary structure of its members, and said, the pay policy seeks to motivate and reform public service workers to improve service delivery and productivity.

Mr Augustine Adongo Apambila, Regional Secretary of the TUC noted that, the programme would be replicated in other districts in the region to promote peace during this year’s elections.**