Peace Building Committee to resolve Peki-Tsito land dispute inaugurated

Ho, April 18, GNA - Mr Joseph Amenowode, Volta Regional Minister on Saturday inaugurated a nine-member Peace Building Committee to resolve the Peki-Tsito/Awudome land dispute with a call on members to be objective in the peace process.

He said it was important for the committee to know that it was not in for a winner-loser situation but rather ensure that all parties made concessions for mutual agreement. Mr Amenowode commended churches in the two communities for initiating the peace process which he described as "a healthy one." He appealed to the two communities to cooperate with the committee and resolve to ensure a lasting solution to the over 30 year land dispute.

Mr Amenowode said the greatest legacy for posterity would be to ensure peace between the two communities to enable their children live and grow in an environment devoid of acrimony, mistrust, fear and anxiety.

This, he said, would enable them to develop their full potentials and urged the communities to show total commitment to the process. Reverend Monsignor Anthony Kornu, who represented Right Reverend Francis Anani Lodonu, Bishop of the Ho Catholic Diocese, reminded the committee that God was using it as an instrument to bring peace hence it should not impose anything on the communities. He asked the members to pray regularly and beware of suspicions, lies, inflammatory statements and rumours adding that the committee must be sober, balanced, objective and emit peace in its utterances. Rev. Monsignor Kornu appealed to chiefs and opinion leaders from the communities to support the committee and desist from power play for their names to go down in history positively. He called on the media to be circumspect in its reportage on the peace process.

Chiefs and opinion leaders from the two communities expressed their happiness in the peace process stating that, they were not only neighbours but related by several cross marriages and therefore there was no need to fight. Mr Emmanuel Bedzra, Member of Parliament (MP) for Ho-West, declared the readiness of MPs from the area to support the peace process and said though the case was in the law courts, the communities needed to resolve their misunderstandings and hopefully withdraw the matter. Reverend Prince Cephas Letsukuma of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church at Peki and Chairman of the committee expressed the commitment of members to do their best and called for support from all stakeholders.