‘Unless drastic measures are put in place, mob attacks would continue’

Unless drastic measures are put in place, mob attacks would escalate in Ghana, the President of Change Attitude Ghana (CAG), Mr Ernest Boateng, has cautioned.

“This is the time the leadership of the country must wake up and deal ruthlessly with the issue of mob attacks and other forms of violence. The President must use the recent cases to set an example for people to change,” he said in an interview with the Daily Graphic.

Background
Last Monday, Ghanaians woke up to the shocking news of the lynching of a young military officer, Captain Maxwell Adam Mahama, and his body burnt by some irate youth of Denkyira-Obuasi in the Central Region on suspicion that he was an armed robber.

A video recording of how the youth lynched the Captain Mahama brought tears and sorrow to many Ghanaians, considering the heinous way in which he was killed.

A day after the incident, there were some media reports of similar attacks in some parts of the country. A man was said to have been lynched in Kumasi after he was alleged to have stolen a mobile phone.

Although all the incidents had been condemned heavily by Ghanaians, including President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, former Presidents John Mahama and John Jerry Rawlings, the CAG, a non-governmental organisation, is convinced that unless the issue of mob attacks was dealt with properly, it will continue.
Mr Boateng said the public anger over the recent case of lynching demanded urgent actions from both the leadership of the country and Ghanaians.

He, however, commended the government for the swift response by suspending the Upper Denkyira West District Chief Executive, Mr Daniel Apiannin, for his unsavoury comments following the lynching of Captain Mahama.
That, he said, had set an example for leaders who did not value authority and respect for other humans.

IGP’s roles
Suggesting some of the ways to deal with mob attacks, Mr Boateng called on the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr David Asante-Appeatu, to deal ruthlessly with people who “take the law into their own hands to perpetrate evil”.

He said many people were taking the law into their hands to perpetrate evil because “they are not made to give an account of their actions”.

“If the police find the perpetrators and deal with them, it would deter many others from engaging in similar actions,” Mr Boateng said.

He said it was so sad that Ghana, seen in the eyes of the international communities as a beacon of modern democracy, would allow such “demeaning” acts to dent the country’s image.

Mr Boateng said one of the major goals of CAG was to lead the campaign for a change in the behaviour of Ghanaians and ensure that people allowed the laws of the country to work.

Over the past few months, he said, CAG had taken its education campaign on change of behaviour to many communities in the Greater Accra Region, adding that “we intend to take it to other regions soon”.