Pro-vigilante politicians to face jail term, 10-year ban from politics – Majority Leader

A jail term as well as a 10-year ban from active politics in the country, awaits leaders of political parties who endorse activities of vigilante groups.

Vigilantism has been the bane of Ghana politics and has been frowned upon by Civil Society Organisations, churches and majority of Ghanaians who have called on political parties affiliated to such groups to dissolve them.

In a bid to deal with the menace of vigilantism, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo appealed to the two main parties, New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to disband those groups.

Failure by the parties to do that has forced the president to present before Parliament, a bill to outlaw the activities of political party vigilantes which is currently at the consideration stage.

Majority Leader Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu speaking at a stakeholder’s forum on monetisation of politics in Ghana on Monday, 8 July 2019 expressed optimism that the bill will be passed into law by the House today, Tuesday, 9 July 2019 to root out vigilantism in Ghana’s body politics.

He said politicians who encourage vigilantes may face a jail term and a ban from politics for a decade.

“What we intend to do is to even identify political parties that harbor these vigilante groups. The leadership of that political party is going to face the law and we intend to imprison them for harboring such vigilante group in their party and then after serving the sentence, at least 10 years will have to elapse before you’re brought back into mainstream politics,” Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said.