It's Narrow Approach To Ask NPP, NDC To Deal With Vigilantism - Lecturer

A Senior Lecturer at the University of Cape Coast, Professor John Gatsi, on Thursday said President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s directive to the two major political parties to resolve political vigilantism in the country is a narrow approach to solving the problem.

He said the country’s security challenge should be tackled holistically by all stakeholders because it was much broader and complex.

He said the recent surge in contract killings, robberies, kidnappings, land guard menace, among others, should be tackled with a much strategic approach, instead of asking the two parties to resolve one of them.

Prof. Gatsi also the Head of the Finance Department of the University, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview, to express his views on the President’s State of the Nation address delivered to Parliament on Thursday.

President Akufo-Addo asked the leadership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and National Democratic Congress (NDC) to come together and agree on appropriate measures to end the phenomenon of political vigilantism.

The President said he had personally asked the leadership of the NPP to extend an invitation to the leadership of NDC for such a meeting to happen and, thus, suggested next week as a preferable date.

Prof. Gatsi objected to the approach, saying that, the nation’s security was critical because it defined the business investment environment and should be handled with the involvement of all the security agencies and other key stakeholders.

With regard to the performance of the macro-economy, he acknowledged reduction in inflation, policy rate, increase in economic growth and other indicators, but said he would have loved to hear the

President mentioned the number of jobs and opportunities created as well as revenues generated with the stabilisation of those indicators.

He said the nation could not glorify in macroeconomic statistics without translating into physical infrastructural development and wellbeing of the people,

2019 SONA

Meanwhile, Dr Eric Oduro Osae, a Local Government Expert, told the GNA that in the absence of defined framework or guide for delivering the State of the Nation address, the President stuck to the directive principles of state policy by highlighting on the key areas of the economy, including health, sanitation, education, infrastructural development, among others.

However, Dr Oduro-Osae said he would have loved to hear the President providing details about the policy statements highlighted in the 2018 address so that the public would know the progress made thus far.

Notwithstanding, Dr Oduro-Osae said the President had done well by supporting the resolution of the age-long Dagbon chieftaincy disputes and taken a decision to celebrate this year’s national independence parade in the Northern Regional Capital, Tamale.

He said moving the independence parade to the Northern Region would carry a positive signal to the investment community that there is peace in the area, therefore, they could invest there.

On political vigilantism, Dr Oduro-Osae suggested that apart from involving the two leading political parties, the religious leaders should also play a prominent role in its resolution.

Source: GNA