NDC, NPP Promoting Disorder
- As Security Services are Incapacitated
Ghana is steadily but gradually sliding into a state of lawlessness thanks to the return to constitutional rule, and thus, could become a failed state in the near future if certain unfortunate craze is not immediately checked.
A fellow at the Legon Center for International Affairs and Diplomacy, Dr Vladimir Antwi-Danso, recently bemoaned how crime is now being given political color in the country to the extent that criminals get protection from the law by the mere association with political parties, especially, the NDC and NPP.
Admittedly, the dominance of the ruling National Democratic Congress and opposition New Patriotic Party since the inception of the Fourth Republic has contributed to entrenching this unhealthy practice whereby criminals get away with heinous crimes by just associating with a political party or simply politicize the issue.
Not only do these two political parties 'shielded’ their members or families who fall foul of the law from prosecution, indeed, in most cases they apply coercive influence in intimidating the security services from conclusively carrying out their constitutional mandate of investigations and where necessary, prosecute offenders.
Over the past 20 years, several immoral atrocities committed by some people in society, have been glossed over with the perpetuators getting off the hook simply because of their political affiliation, thereby, denying the families of the victim/s justice.
The security services in Ghana save, the army, have over the years developed cold feet in appropriately dealing with crime and criminal offences involving politicians, their members and/or families for fear of victimization by officials of the government in power or, in the case of the opposition party, in the event it wins power.
Investigations into several “high profile” cases with political undercurrents in the country in the past have been inconclusive. Either the perpetuators are not indentified or investigation is abandoned midway.
After the 1992 general elections, the NDC constituency Chairman for Effia Kwesimintsim, in the Western region, Alhaji Imoro Adam was callously attacked by some hoodlums and burnt to death, and 23 years down the line, nobody has been apprehended let alone, to talk of being prosecuted.
While several of such crimes have gone unpunished, the most atrocious occurred on March 27, 2002 when the overlord of Dagbon, Ya Na Yakubu Andani II was gruesomely murdered, and as it has become the norm, the killers of the king have not been found to date.
Although some persons were arrested and later discharged by an Accra High Court, the murder case assumed political dimension with the NDC accusing the NPP of complicity in the developments that led to the killing of the king. Also, in November last year, the District Chief Executive for Nkwanta South in the Volta Region, Peter Kojo Kenyeso was shot dead and his killers are yet to be identified.
Reports say 13 people have been arrested with 8 of them granted bail by the Human Rights court while 5 are on remand. It is not yet known if the five have been formally charge for the ghastly murder of the former DCE.
The recent outrageous case that has seen many pilling pressure on the police to up their ante in unraveling those behind it, is the ghastly assassination of the Upper East regional Chairman of the NPP, Alhaji Adams Mahama.
Alhaji Adams Mahama died on Thursday, May 21, 2015, a day after he was bathed with acid.
Two people, media reports indicate, have been arrested with one of the suspects; believe to be the brother of NPP National Chairman, Paul Afoko, standing trial at an Accra magistrate court.
Other atrocious crimes that the perpetuators were not identified or investigation is abandoned midway include the killing of two people at Agbogbloshie, the abduction and near killing of former NPP Chairman at Krowor constituency in 2004, the beating to death of an NDC activist at Kumasi-Tafo in 2000, the 2010 beatings of an NPP activist claimed to be an Alan Kyeremanteng 'boy' who has since been paralyzed, the killing of two chiefs at Denkyira, the petrol bombing case in the Volta region among several others.
