Reverend Dr. Nii Amoo Darku, member of the Governing Board of the National Peace Council (NPC), has called for cautious attempt to maintain the existing peace and to prevent pockets of conflicts in Brong-Ahafo from escalating.

He mentioned some of the conflicts as the Nsoatre, Berekum, Wenchi, Dwan, Nkomi and Wamfie chieftaincy disputes as well as the Japekrom-Drobo land disputes and the Techiman–Tuobodom identity claims.

Rev. Dr Darku made the call at a five-day capacity building workshop organised by the NPC in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for chiefs, women and youth groups on security and peace building recently in Sunyani.

He said the workshop was timely and critical since it would help the participants to effectively deal with grassroots conflicts as well as mediate in potential large scale conflicts.

Rev. Dr Darku urged traditional rulers to occasionally engage in leadership dialogue and participatory analysis of conflicts situation in the region to create the enabling environment to restore confidence for the necessary social change.

“The NPC is a vital component of the national peace architecture and a main catalyst of peace in the country and seeks to harness all efforts towards achieving a country free of acrimony, rancor, vindictiveness, bitterness and violent reactions to conflicts across the country,” he said.

Rev. Dr Darku added that the mandate of the Council was to facilitate and develop mechanisms to prevent, manage, resolve and build sustainable peace in the country as well as create awareness on the use of non-violent strategies to prevent and resolve conflicts.

The NPC is an independent statutory national peace institution established by Act 818 (Act 2011) with a governing board of thirteen 13 members and was in the process of establishing offices nation-wide.

Mr. Paul Evans Aidoo, Brong-Ahafo Regional Minister, in a speech read for him, stressed the need for the region to sustain its enviable position as the most peaceful area.

“Conflict was inevitable but aggrieved persons should not resort to violence but seek redress through the appropriate means,” he advised.

The Regional Minister said one way the youth could help the region in peace and conflict resolution was for them to understand their leadership capacity by educating themselves on community leadership.

Youth leaders could identify joint livelihood projects in conjunction with on-going efforts to promote dialogue and resolve core issues in the region, Mr. Aidoo added.

Mr. Francis Azuma, the Executive Secretary of NPC, noted “conflict is a necessary component in human lives which helps us to discover the humanity in us”.

He explained conflicts allowed people to discover the intelligence and capabilities in them and the perception they had for each other, and advised that necessary mechanism for peace dialogue should rather be in place to avoid escalation.

He said traditional leaders as custodians of the land, should lead in the crusade for sustainable peace in their communities.

Nana Bofo Bene IV, Vice President of the Regional House of Chiefs, who presided, noted that conflicts surfaced in every facet of the society, hence “its management is important”.

He said since peace was a pre-requisite for development, all must embrace it and respect the rule of law.

Nana Bene urged traditional rulers to protect their ancestral heritage through the promotion of peace and tranquility in their communities, saying “We cannot be carrying our stools to flee in the unlikely event of war”.