Director of Academic Affairs and Research at the Kofi Annan International Peace-Keeping and Training Centre, Dr Emmanuel Kwesi Aning, , has said manifestos of political parties should be made legally binding to ensure that they fulfil their promises.
He said experiences in the Fourth Republic have shown that political parties made wild unattainable promises just to woo people to vote for them only for the parties to disappoint them by not fulfilling the promises.
He said such disappointment tended to breed the lawless acts ( including vigilantism), committed by especially the youth when a new government assumes power because they want to find means of achieving their aims as their government was in power.
Dr Aning made the call when delivering a lecture to mark the 15th anniversary of NORSAAC, a gender-based civil society organization in Tamale
His topic was: “Curbing Youth Vigilantism in Ghana: a Panacea for Sustainable Democracy.â€
Since December last year when the NPP won power, about 21 incidents of youth violence tagged as vigilante acts in the form of chasing workers out of their offices, seizing public toilets amongst others were committed across the country by youth groups aligned to the party, most of which went unpunished.
Dr Aning said in other jurisdictions, manifestos were considered legal documents adding that such must apply to the country’s situation to assure the electorate that their leaders would deliver on their promises to help curb the lawlessness exhibited by the youth after a new government assumed power.
He said the rising youth population in the country and the lack of opportunities for them had security implications as disappointed youth were likely to engage in organized violence.
Dr Aning accused political leaders of acting in a self-contradictory manner which encouraged youth lawlessness and hooliganism in the country.
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