Journalist and a member of Media for Justice and Accountability Kwabena Bobie Ansah has said the former NDC administration must be blamed for the spate of vigilantism by NPP members in the country.
Bobie explained that the NPP youth groups have gained notoriety in view of the Mahama administration’s failure to contain the NPP attacks when it surfaced in the run-up to the 2016 general elections.
“I get sick if i hear NDC also criticizing this phenomenon because they failed to stamp out the attacks by NPP members when they were in power. You had power and could have easily used the state security apparatus to rein them in when they were getting out of hand. These boys begun their attacks under the NDC administration and now they’ve gained a solid foothold. Perhaps the thinking of the former administration was that it was NPP members fighting among themselves and so they will not bother to intervene. I can tell you on authority that even one of the bigwigs in NPP and owner of a private newspaper went to the National Security under the Mahama-led administration to complain about this, that the government should clamp down on the NPP attacks, but were to no avail because it didn’t concern them.” he told host Fiifi Banson on Anopa Kasapa on Kasapa 102.5 FM Tuesday. The NPP youth groups have since January ramped up attacks on state installations and other government agencies.
At least 20 of separate violent cases perpetrated by loyalists of the governing New Patriotic Party(NPP) have been recorded since the party won political power in 2016.
Several Civil Society Groups have called on government to act decisively against the escalating mayhem and disturbances taking a centre stage in Ghanaian politics.
Most argue the situation may get out of hands, especially when culprits involved in such acts are left off the hook, or are treated with kid gloves by the Police and the Judiciary after their arrests.