VEEP BEMOANS CONFLICTS (APRIL 27, PAGE 3)

THE Vice-President, Mr John Mahama, has described as unfortunate the protracted conflicts that continue to draw back development in the northern part of the country.
He, however, expressed the government’s determination to ensure sustainable peace to attract the necessary development initiatives to the area.
He noted that the only way to guarantee peace in the area was to ensure even handedness in matters relating to breaches of the peace, for which reason the government “will hold people personally responsible for their actions, irrespective of their ethnic or political affiliations”.
Mr Mahama mentioned the National Peace Council, civil society organisations and traditional authorities as some of the stakeholders the government intended to involve in its peace drive enterprise.
He reminded the people that all the interventions by the government to ensure the accelerated development of the north, such as the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) initiative, would not produce the needed impact if there was no harmony among the people.
Mr Mahama, who was speaking at the investiture of the Metropolitan Catholic Archbishop of Tamale, the Most Reverend Philip Naameh, in Tamale at the weekend, lauded the Catholic Church for its tolerance of other religious denominations over the years.
“There is the need for people to learn from this illustrious example of coexistence and religious tolerance and extend such virtues to their communities and towns,” he admonished.
The new Archbishop, who was born at Nandom in the Upper West Region in 1948, is taking over from the Most Rev Gregory Kpiebaya, who is now retired.
Archbishop Naameh was, until his installation, the Bishop of the Damongo Diocese. He is also the Episcopal Chairman for Catholic Education in the country and a member of the Ghana Education Service Council.
The ceremony, which took place at the Jubilee Park, attracted a large congregation made up of the clergy and laymen and women from within and outside the country.
Also present were chiefs, members of the Council of State, Ministers of State, Members of Parliament and metropolitan and district chief executives.
The Vice-President also commended the church for its immeasurable service to humanity and described Archbishop Naameh as approachable, sincere and hardworking.
Archbishop Naameh noted that the existing conflicts in the area were partly the result of the deep-seated suspicion, bitterness and hatred among the feuding factions.
He also mentioned the high levels of illiteracy and ignorance as some of the reasons behind the disturbances, noting that “unity and peace are only possible if we allow ourselves to be guided by God’s spirit. It is only when God’s spirit guides us that we can heal our wounds, forgive one another and chart a progressive course for ourselves”.
The Archbishop further indicated that after 51 years of independence, the people could not continue to blame the colonial masters for their under-development and that what was needed was a strong political will to accelerate the socio-economic development of the north.
He entreated politicians from the area to unite for the common good of the people they represented and proposed that a percentage of the Value Added Tax be channelled into the SADA to ensure its sustainability.