The Zongo Youth Patriots Ghana, a youth wing of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on Monday appealed to youth in Zongo Communities to be guarded and not allow themselves to be used "as poodles" by politicians to cause riots that could plunge the country into chaos.

A statement signed by Mr Hamza Sulaiman, its President, and copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Sunyani, said "former President Mahama's posture after the 2020 general election has brought brouhaha as he has not accepted the transparent electoral results.

"This act from the opposition leader has left a cause to be worried as it shakes the peace of the country and unfortunately the Zongo communities and Zongo youths have been identified as agents to cause mayhem".

Over the years, the statement explained Zongo youth had been "used as poodles by politicians, to perpetuate violence without any commensurate benefits. This has cast a slur on the dignity and integrity of the Zongo youths, as they are seen as violent mongers, a tag they must move away from.

"The NPP government in its bid to address the teething issue of low level of development in the Zongo communities came up with a number of policies like the Zongo Development Fund, which provided scholarships to the Zongo youth to further their educational studies.

"The fund will also provide Astro Turfs to help nurture sports talents, schools and other social amenities, all aimed at addressing the issues that were inimical to the development of the Zongo", it added.

The statement added "the NDC on other hand had shown beyond doubts that they had nothing good to offer the Zongo youth, but to exploit and dump them thereafter.

"If the NDC led by Ex-President Mahama has concrete evidence of electoral infractions leading to their defeat, they should gather their facts and figures and go to the court for redress as the NPP's then Presidential Candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo did in 2012 than to keep throwing tantrums and threats of disturbing national peace".

The statement congratulated President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for their re-election".