A member of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Bright Kobla Agbodeka has advised politicians to avoid the use of vituperative expressions in their quest to reach out to the people.

He said this would reduce tensions and consolidate the peace the country has enjoyed over the years.

Mr Agbodeka made the call during an address to the chiefs and people of Afadzato South constituency during a Parliamentary Candidates Dialogue organised by the Commission.

He said the use of intemperate language during campaigns could inflame passion among political opponents that might lead to conflicts and violence among supporters.

Ghanaians should not ferment any form of violence because it will guarantee a civil and stable society for all, he said.

Mr Agbodeka said in order to remove vituperations, hate speech and mudslinging among the body politics of Ghana, the NCCE 2004 instituted a research project known as Matters of Concern (MOC) to the voter and findings served as a guide for politicians.

He said over 9000 respondents mentioned Education, employment, health, infrastructure, economy and agriculture as some of the important concerns that they required future governments to address.

“That is why we are subjecting these concerns to those who want to represent us for their ideas that will go a long way in addressing their challenges and we expect that at the end of the dialogue we will be more informed about their qualitative ideas and opinions on the issues,” he said.

Touching on the Commission’s theme for 2024 activities, he said “Together we can build Ghana, so get involved.”

Mr Agbodeka pointed out that building a nation was not an individual affair but a collective responsibility for all.

The Afadzato South District of the Commission, Ellen Amankwa implored the candidates to articulate their views and concerns without insults and urged supporters to pay close attention to what they said.

Assistant Superintendent of Polic, Godfred Awiredu, and Afadzato South District Commander of Police who is also the Chairman of the Inter-Party Dialogue Committee (IPDC) promised to maintain peace during and after the elections.

Togbi Ayidzoe VI, Regent of Ve Golokuati called for peace among contesters and advised them to be moderate in their promises so that electorates would not see them as lairs when they were unable to fulfill their promises.

“A day will come when you will be called to render accounts to the people based on promises you make,” he added.

Frank Afriyie of NDC and Tracy Semanu Tegbey of LPG participated in the dialogue and took turns responding to a research report by the NCCE which ranked education, jobs, health, Economy and agriculture as the most important matters of concern to the Ghanaian voter.

Meanwhile, James Etornam Flolu of the New Patriotic Party could not attend due to an emergency.