DEC 7 POLLS WON'T UNDERMINE GAINS — EUROPEAN UNION (SPREAD)

Ambassadors of European Union (EU) countries in Ghana have expressed optimism that the December polls will not threaten and undermine the gains Ghana has made so far in its democratic dispensation.
They noted that although the nation had recorded a number of political incidents in some parts of the country in recent times, there was no “justification for us to worry about whether or not the elections will be successful”.
They further said that Ghana was “the shining star of Africa and should not allow this year’s elections to jeopardise the confidence reposed in it by both the international community and foreign investors”.
The Ambassador and Head of the EU Delegation in Ghana, Mr Filiberto Ceriani Sebregondi, and the French Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Francis Hurtut, stated this at a press conference in Tamale yesterday during a two-day fact-finding mission to the Northern Region by an eight-member delegation of EU ambassadors to ensure peaceful elections in the area.
The visit afforded the delegation the opportunity to get first-hand information on political activities in the region, particularly the Tamale metropolis, in the run-up to the general election.
The delegation met with representatives of political parties, the Electoral Commission, the Regional Security Council (REGSEC), religious leaders, chiefs and civil society groups.
They also visited some polling stations in Tamale and the Savelugu-Nanton District.
Mr Sebregondi stressed the need for transparent elections to ensure the success of the December polls.
According to him, the delegation would dialogue with stakeholders on the need to ensure peaceful elections, devoid of violence.
“We decided to come to this region because of the stiff political competition that exists here and more so we are already quite conversant with the electoral challenges that face the southern sector of the country,” Mr Sebregondi further intimated.
He announced that an EU electoral observer team was already in the country to support efforts at ensuring free and fair elections.
Mr Hurtut stated that the fact-finding mission was not directly linked to the recent political violence that occurred in Tamale and Gushiegu but to ensure peaceful elections.