Although there is extreme partisanship in the body politic, people recognise the need to maintain the prevailing peace so that Ghana can continue to be the reference point for peace on the African continent.
There is apprehension in the air. We can all feel a certain sense of anxiety among the people about the aftermath of the Supreme Court verdict. The business environment has also been affected as traders complain of a lull in business activities.
We do not need a soothsayer to tell us that many of our compatriots are not very sure about the reaction of the protagonists and their supporters to the outcome of the election dispute.
Some people have had a foreboding since the commencement of the election petition hearing, especially when some supporters of the protagonists could say anything to prejudice the case before the learned judges.
We all know that until the Supreme Court drew the touchline beyond which people would be sanctioned, journalists, politicians, social commentators and even lawyers could make any outrageous remarks as if there were no order in our society. That period was akin to the state of nature when no order reigned and lawlessness was the order of the day.
Before then and now, many level-headed individuals and groups have called on President John Mahama and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the protagonists in the election petition, to pledge to respect the Supreme Court verdict. These two leaders have shown abundant commitment to peace but others are worried about the commitment of their supporters.
During the run-up to the 2012 elections and thereafter, our public policy institutions have not missed any opportunity to impress upon people the need to sustain the peace and stability of the country.
Our democracy has travelled this far because of sustained public education programmes, to the extent that military coups d’etat have become unfashionable in the country.
After six successful polls, Ghana has become the Mecca of politics on the African continent and statements to the effect that we are doing well are not meant to flatter us but encourage us to sustain the initiative.
It is against this backdrop that the Daily Graphic commends the National Peace Council (NPC), Manhyia Palace, the National House of Chiefs, the Civic Forum Initiative and the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG) for once again providing the platform to discuss plans to manage the Supreme Court verdict.
Some of our compatriots have expressed misgivings about the constant reminders by civil society organisations to anticipate violence if the minds of the political parties and their teeming supporters are not well conditioned for the final verdict. To this group of people, these forums rather remind us of danger ahead.
Be that as it may, it is important to continue to condition everybody’s mind for the Supreme Court’s verdict so that nobody decides to engage in actions that will derail the peace and stability of the country.
The Daily Graphic considers the initiatives to educate Ghanaians to accept the verdict of the Supreme Court, whichever way it will go, as very critical to the future of our democracy.
Although we have been very successful in organising elections, we have never managed any election dispute of this magnitude before.
The whole world is looking up to us to show the way, at least on the African continent, and we cannot afford to fail.
Daily Graphic/Ghana
