Hon. Joseph Bukari Ninkpe, the Member of Parliament for Saboba, has appealed to the people of Konkomba traditional area to protect the peace in the area and unite to spur development.

“Let us not allow ourselves to be divided by partisan politics and chieftaincy disputes because we are one people with a common destiny”, he said.

Speaking at a homecoming durbar organized by the Konkomba Youth Association (KOYA) in Saboba, Mr Ninkpe said, it was natural that other people might have divergent views about issues but that did not call for fight or hatred.

The durbar, under the theme “Home Development and Literacy Day,” brought together sons and daughters of Konkomba, to take stock of the activities of the previous year and trade ideas on how to initiate development projects, to reduce poverty and illiteracy in the area.

It was also to reform the 35-year-old association to chart a new path to ensure peace and unity in the traditional area.

Mr Ninkpe said people should do away with the notion that supporters of the two main political parties, the National Democratic Congress and the New Patriotic Party, are enemies.

“Let us discourage the youth from allowing themselves to be used as instruments of violence”, he said.

Mr Ninpke advised parents to make education of their children a priority and added “money is better spent on education than marring more wives.”

Mr Justice Robin B. Batu, a Presiding Judge in the Ashanti Region, appealed to the people to demand from political aspirants, firm commitment on the development of the area especially education and language discrimination.

He said keeping Likpakpaln, the local language of the people of Konkomba out of the National Literacy Accelerated Programme (NLP) by the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service was discriminatory and flouted Article 17 (2) and (3) of the Constitution.

Alhaji Emmanuel Benson, National President of KOYA, said lack of education had contributed to the area’s developmental challenges and called for a rigorous campaign on education.

Mr Roland Kofi Mbui, the First Vice President of KOYA, said the association started at a time when the traditional area was engulfed in conflict with other ethnic groups in the region.

He said the association had contributed to reducing these conflicts through its effective and efficient leadership and had facilitated socio-cultural and economic development in the area.**