New brooms and sweepers are needed at this crucial time, and the use of the same old broom to sweep out the mess must be eradicated.

The old brooms are weak and must be reinforced as soon as possible if we are genuinely interested in bringing an end to the unfortunate, protracted mayhem.

In many of my analyses of Bawku, I consistently advise that military occupation and unwarranted curfews should not be the primary approaches to resolving the conflict.

I keep saying that such actions could lead to chaos, particularly the killing of peacekeepers, including security personnel.

I feel pain when successive governments assume that conflict resolution should be solely the responsibility of "big names."

We are in a new era, and therefore, measures to mitigate conflicts must be commensurate with the current exigencies.

Credibility and trustworthiness are also key components in conflict resolution. An attractive tone, wisdom, creativity, innovation, patience to listen, and a strong personality are profoundly important in peacekeeping efforts.

The author, Francis Ahovi is a security analyst and the Executive Secretary of Global Security for Africa Research and Good Governance (GLOSARGG).