President Nana Akufo-Addo has followed up on his promise to introduce new legislation to deal with political thuggery, ordering the Attorney-General to draft a bill “as soon as possible”.
This directive was contained in a letter responding to the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) which has been pressing the President over his proposals to address the menace of party militias.
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This is to acknowledge receipt of your most recent letter, dated 11`” March, 2019, and thank you for its contents. My response to it is in two parts.
Firstly, I note that you have, quite properly, given a copy of It to the Chairperson of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. Freddie Blay. I have asked him to respond to its contents, since he is the rightful person to speak directly for the New Patriotic Party, and I expect that he will do so promptly.
Secondly, since the constitutional responsibility of maintaining law and order in our country is that of the Executive, i.e. the President of the Republic, 1 have, in line with my pronouncement to Parliament during the Message on the State of the Nation on 21′ February, 2019, instructed the Attorney General, without prejudice to the outcome of the engagement, if any, between the NPP and NDC, to prepare and submit to Parliament, as soon as possible, specific legislation to deal with the phenomenon of vigilantism, and provide appropriate sanctions against its occurrence.
I believe that the parliamentary process of enactment affords sufficient space for any citizen to make an input or contribution to the enactment of a good and effective law, whose implementation will enable us rid our nation of politically-related violence, a development that can only inure to the benefit of Ghanaian democracy and to the preservation of law and order.
Once again, I thank you for the expression of your commitment to ending the vigilante phenomenon in Ghana.