Chiefs have been called upon to lead the fight against rising lawlessness in the country, in the wake of the lynching and burning of army officer Captain Maxwell Adam Mahama last Monday.
The National House of Chiefs says “every town and village in our country has a chief, and so [chiefs] must accept the responsibility for ensuring that even criminals, including thieves, who are caught in the act, are handed over to the law enforcement agencies”.
In a statement on Thursday, June 1, the House described the gruesome killing of Captain Mahama as a wake-up call “and we must act before the situation gets out of hand”.
It said “attacking and killing someone on a mere suspicion makes our society unsafe, and exposes each one of us to grace risk”.
The House expressed condolences to the bereaved family especially the deceased’s wife and children as well as his parents.
“We pray that God will give them strength and fortitude to bear the pain of the untimely loss of their beloved.”
Captain Mahama’s lynching comes after a couple of mob injustice cases some which have resulted in the burning of police vehicles.
The nation’s chiefs reminded Ghanaians that visiting brutal acts on defenceless fellow human beings “is not the civilised way of dealing with issues”.
“We should therefore at all times, no matter how trying ,allow the state security agencies to act in our collective interest.”
The House acknowledged that there is “too much lawlessness” in the country lately.
“The frequency of lawless behaviour, the impunity with which such behaviours are carried out, and the fact that most of the culprits escape punishment seem to portray lawless behaviour as part of our way of life.”
It said this is due to the lack of relevant state institutions and citizens to enforce law and order.
“The House therefore urges the security and allied institutions to strongly and expeditiously enforce the law in order to prevent the country from sliding into anarchy.
“Let us all collaborate without further delay to address the alarming trend.”
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