We
would like to strongly subscribe to the appeal of the Independent Electoral
Commission (IEC), to members and supporters of the all the political parties in
this country, as well as the general public that peace is a priceless
commodity, which must always be jealously guarded in society.
The
call by the IEC is timely as the nation is fast approaching the forthcoming
Presidential election – on 1 December 2016.
In
a press release sent to the media, the IEC made a pertinent call on all and
sundry – now that political parties and candidates are touring the country
campaigning for endorsement of their candidature, for nominations to contest
the forthcoming Presidential elections come 1st December 2016 - that: all political parties and candidates
should “desist from the use of inflammatory language or any other means that
will lead to violence”, that the general public should “respect the rights of
political parties and candidates as enshrined in the Constitution and Elections
Act”, and that everyone should “be tolerant to each other”.
As
the IEC put it, this should be the order of the day, since violence and
incitement of violence though inflammatory remarks would not bear good results.
We
are quite aware of the mayhem and agony political crises have caused in other
countries in Africa, and other parts of the world. The aftermath of those
crises, fuelled by inflammatory language and other incitements, have had to
live with those affected nations for long years, leading to unwanted fatality,
family distortions and displacement of people with some for the rest of their
lives.
We
in The Gambia are a peaceful nation, and we have striven over the years to
remain peaceful, which has made our nation the envy of the world and has
yielded much dividends for us on several fronts.
So
let us heed the advice of the IEC and keep the peace through respect for one another,
and proper observation of our current electioneering process up till the voting
day and thereafter. We should, therefore, ensure that all that will preserve
peace is observed, including justice, free and fair elections, by all of us.
The
Independent Electoral Commission has assured “all stakeholders of a Free, Fair
and Transparent Electoral Process”. Let’s maintain that.
:
“Peace is costly but it is worth the expense”
-
African proverb
