Some opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) gurus in the Ashanti Region are activating plans to gather hoodlums and form a vigilante group in preparation for the 2024 general election.
Security sources said the party’s Regional Chairman, Augustus Nana Kwasi Andrews and Alhaji Saani Abdulai, who is the Second Vice Chairman of the NDC, on Thursday, July 15, 2021, allegedly met members of the Obuasi West Constituency Vigilante Task Force of the NDC, to revive the movement which is considered illegal under the new Vigilantes Law, recently passed.
The Regional Chairman reportedly urged members of the vigilante group to be in readiness as it has been decided by the party hierarchy that the 2024 election campaign would be spearheaded by all vigilante task forces within the various constituencies nationwide, to secure victory for the party.
The thugs were then promised employment in the Ministry of National Security as Operatives if the NDC wins the 2024 presidential election.
The leadership of the vigilante group was also tasked to compile a list of all logistics, including guns and ammunition that would be needed during the campaign, to be provided by party hierarchy.
The same group called NDC Task Force, was used by the party for vigilante activities during the 2020 general election and are still being used publicly to provide security at mass gatherings of the party.
In the aftermath of the violence that characterised the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election, there was a general public outcry to ban vigilantism from the body politic of Ghana.
Since then, some practical steps such as the passage of the Anti-Vigilantism Bill into law have been taken.
Despite the occurrence of pockets of violence in the 2020 general elections, incidents resulting from the activities of political vigilante groups were largely minimised.