A Fulbright U.S. Scholar Awardee, Dr Hakim Williams, has urged students at the tertiary level to take up the role of ensuring harmony on campuses.
Dr Williams believes this will go a long way to address the conflict situation in the country with the main focus on campus.
“The task of maintaining peace in society doesn’t belong to the leaders”, he stated on Wednesday, November 9.
He was speaking at a public lecture organized by the Youth Bridge Foundation in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy, the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) and the University Students’ Association of Ghana (USAG).
It was held on the theme; ‘My Neighbour My Friend, My Neighbour My Enemy: Youth, Peace & Security’.
Addressing the gathering at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Center in Accra, Dr. Hakim explained that unemployment, tension between youth and elders because of different norms and values, a fast-changing global economy, bad influence on the youth has led to conflict situations ripping the country apart.
Dr. Hakim stated that building a Ghana that is inclusive and equitable lies in the hands of every individual.
He reiterated that conflict resolution is not the duty of the leaders in institutions only but also individuals’ collective effort to mitigate the high prevalence of conflict situations in the various tertiary institutions.
Also speaking at the event was a Chief Superintendent of Police, Alhaji Al-Meyao Abass Kwarasey.
The officer detailed some of the strategies the Police is putting in place to address the issue of campus conflicts.
According to him, the police visits schools to engage the students’ leadership to educate them about the various conflict resolution styles they can adopt in times of conflict situations.
He further encouraged members of society to cooperate and volunteer trustworthy information to the police to help fight crime.
He assured the public that the police administration has initiated protective measures for their informants and that those who report crimes will receive compensation.
Meanwhile, the President of the University Students Association of Ghana (USAG), Dr. Christian Anderson, disclosed that his outfit is working with various organisations such as the Ghana Digital Center, to offer these students opportunities for entrepreneur training on campuses.
This move, he believes, can help students develop skills and judiciously invest their time and energy.
The lecture was chaired by the Executive Secretary of the National Peace Council (NPC), George Amoh. Other key personalities present were members from NUGS and USAG, representatives from the U.S. Embassy, students from some universities across the country and the media.
