Head of United Nations West African Office, Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas has charged government to strengthen security at the country's borders as the 2020 general election approaches.

Speaking at the launch of the ‘Ballot Without Ballots’ campaign by the National Commission of Small Arms and Light Weapons, he noted that deploying the military to these areas will prevent gun violence on Election Day and spillover of terrorist activities within the sub-region

“We need to strengthen security at the borders to ensure that all arms used in conflicts are not recycled here during the election period.

"This also puts a curb on the smuggling of small arms and light weapons into the country. The Northern axis is very important because of the situation found in Burkina Faso," he said.

Earlier this month, the Customs Division of the GRA intercepted some 436 pistols and 26 packs of ammunitions which had been imported into the country without the necessary documentation.

While investigations are still ongoing, Dr Ibn Chambas asked citizens to desist from any activity that could threaten the peace of the country.

Meanwhile, the National Commission of Small Arms and Light Weapons has revealed over 4,098 areas have been identified as hotspots prone to violence in the 2020 polls, with the Ashanti region top of the list with 635 flashpoints.

However, the revelation has being questioned by the major political parties.

In an interview on Joy FM, the Ashanti Regional Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress, Kwame Zu alledged that the act is to only intimidate NDC supporters in communities along the country’s borders.

“These are peace-loving people that until recently the areas have never been known as flashpoints. But there has been some deliberate attempts to create an air of confusion in those areas to be a reason to deploy the military and police," he said.

On his part, the Ashanti Regional Secretary of the governing New Patriotic Party, Sam Pyne said the over 600 areas identified in his region may have been exaggerated.

He also stressed that government is not seeking to suppress votes in the NDC strongholds.