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Professor Seth Opuni Asiama, Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Regional Election Early Warning Response Group, (REEWARG) has cautioned members of the group to execute their mandate devoid of showing openly their party leanings.

“Compromising our partisan neutrality, has the potential to undermine our work and cause some agitations among the electorate and this would breach the peace we have been asked to protect,” he added.

Prof. Asiama, also the Regional Chairman of the Ashanti Regional Peace Council, was addressing the maiden stakeholder meeting of REEWARG launched in the Region about two- weeks ago, tasked to pick up early warning/risks of election violence and with the assistance of WANEP, design appropriate responses to reduce the potential for conflict.

The USAID is partnering West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) and the UNDP, to provide sponsorship for the programme as part of efforts to strengthen early response to warnings of election violence before they started or snowballed.

 Members of the Group will ensure that electoral conflict threats at the grassroots level receive immediate attention and response at the regional level and provide direct input into the National Peace Council’s activities.

 REEWARG would also collaborate with WANEP, which has already appointed and trained community monitors across the country, to facilitate the work of REEWARG to identify early signals of risks of election violence.

Prof. Asiama rallied the support of all Ghanaians to assist the group in its works saying that as the country inched closer to the elections in December, vigilance to pick up the early conflict signals and report them to the appropriate quarterses to help nib in a bud any chaotic situation, was a must to protect the peace of the country.

He urged the eminent members of the Group to use their years of experience and influence to achieve the objectives for which the group was set up to enable Ghana maintain its credentials as an icon of peace.

Ms. Nana Serwaa Bonsu Amoako, the West African Regional USAID Programme Management Specialist said despite Ghana’s international accolade as a peaceful, democratic country, all must be done to eliminate all potential risks of violence and instability.

The Ashanti REEWAG is composed of members of an election task force, some members of the Regional Peace Council and representatives of National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE), the Electoral Commission, (EC), and the Ashanti Regional Traditional Council.

Others are representatives of the Ashanti Regional Journalists Association (GJA), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), with representatives of the security agencies as observers.