THE Regent of Dagbon, Kampakuya-Na Yakubu Abdulai Andani, has called on the Northern Regional Security Council (REGSEC) to be vigilant and firm to ensure that those harbouring the intention of going to Chereponi to cause confusion during the by-election today are arrested.
He suggested that vigorous checks be made to stop non-residents and non-indegenes of Chereponi, particularly those from Tamale, Gushiegu and Yendi who were not eligible to vote, from fomenting trouble during the by-election.
The Kampakuya-Na made the call when the Vice-President, Mr John Dramani Mahama and his entourage paid a courtesy call on him at his palace in Yendi at the weekend.
Mr Mahama’s visit was to thank the chiefs and people of the area for their prayers and support during the 2008 general election.
According to the regent, information reaching him indicated that some people were allegedly harbouring the intention of transporting people to the area to breach the peace.
The Kampakuya-Na stressed that the prevailing peace in the area should be protected and entreated supporters of both the contesting candidates and the political parties to co-operate with the Electoral Commission to ensure a peaceful by-election.
He commended the government for the prevailing peace in the area and the Northern Region as a whole.
The Vice-President, for his part, said the government believed in effective justice delivery and stated that perpetrators of all forms of human rights abuses, including the murder of the late Ya-Na Yakubu Andani II, would be made to face the full rigours of the law.
He further explained that an investigation report had been submitted to the National Security Council for study and that investigations into all alleged human rights violations would be opened.
“We have to resolve the Dagbon crisis for the accelerated development of the area,” Mr Mahama observed.
Touching on the by-election, he assured the regent that the government had put in place the necessary security arrangements for a peaceful by-election.
He assured Ghanaians that the government would fulfil its promises, saying, “We have already started putting in place the necessary interventions such as the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) that will help to bridge the development gap between the north and the south.”
The Vice-President was accompanied by the Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Dr Hanna Bisiw; the Minister of Communications, Mr Haruna Iddrisu; the Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo; the Northern Regional Minister, Mr Stephen Sumani Nayina, among other government functionaries.
Meanwhile, to ensure fool-proof security during today’s by-election in the Chereponi Constituency, 10 policemen, six of them armed, have been stationed at each of the 55 polling stations.
Additionally, three checkpoints have been mounted at each point of entry to the constituency.
The Northern Regional Police Commander, ACP Angwubutoge Awuni, who disclosed this said people going to and from the town were also being searched thoroughly.
He reiterated the determination of the security agencies to ensure a violence-free poll today and assured that they had made adequate preparations to nip in the bud, any attempt to breach the peace.
He therefore cautioned those who might be habouring any intention of causing trouble to reconsider it or face the full force of the law.
He advised all those who had nothing to do at Chereponi to stay away and allow the people of Chereponi to decide who represents them in Parliament.
The police commander called on the contesting political parties to conduct their activities within the confines of the law, saying it was not the intention of the security to abuse anyone's right but "if you misbehave, we will be compelled to use any reasonable force to maintain law and order."
The Chereponi by-election was necessitated by the death of the New Patriotic Party MP, Doris Asibi Seidu, last July.
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