Use CAN 2008 To Promote Peace – Kan Dapaah

THE MINISTER for Defence, Mr. Albert Kan Dapaah has charged the chiefs and people of the Northern Region to use the upcoming African Cup of Nations to demonstrate to the world that the area is peaceful.

The Tamale Metropolis, according to him, would be a centre of attraction for many foreigners during the 2008 football fiesta, affording them the opportunity to prove their skeptics wrong about the volatile nature of the region.

The minister, paying a courtesy call on the regent of Tamale, Naa Ziblim Alhassan, as part of his two-day working visit to the metropolis to interact with the military, appealed for maximum co-operation to achieve the common objective of peace for the entire region ahead of the event.

He gave assurance of maximum security before and after the tournament and commended the regent for his support for the security personnel deployed to the area.

Mr. Dapaah also formally announced to the regent his assumption of duty as the Defence Minister and particularly commended the regent for making it possible for him to visit the Kampakuya Naa at Yendi.

He noted that it was the duty of his outfit to ensure that peace is prevalent in the region and appealed to the chiefs to play similar roles as partners in the maintenance of peace.

He particularly urged the chiefs to remain ambassadors of peace through their services to their subjects and the country.

The Gulpkegu regent, Alhassan Ziblim reaffirmed his peaceful co-existence with the military and pledged his fullest support to enable them to embark on their mandated duties before and after the tournament.

The Tamale Metropolitan Chief Executive, Mohammed Amin Ada, disclosed that to ensure maximum security in the metropolis, street lights were being worked on to renovate the area for the event.

He described the assertion that the metropolis was not a favourable ground for the teams selected to camp there as mischievous, noting that Tamale was more peaceful than any part of the country.

The minister and his entourage had earlier paid courtesy calls on some traditional and religious leaders in the region.
He has since returned to Accra.