The Chairman of Parliament’s Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, Ben Abdallah has said the National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) concerns over the Vigilantism Bill will be examined.
At a stakeholder meeting on the bill on Thursday, the NDC indicated among other things that the bill lacks clarity.
[contextly_sidebar id=”fIjiKsMZX4SUzEAoZvqAws5WvjPurUZD”]Speaking to Citi News, Mr Abdallah indicated that the committee has taken the concerns raised by the NDC including other stakeholders on board and will respond to them at the appropriate time.
“So the NDC came and presented their views and raised some concerns, for instance, the title of the bills. Also, the offence that the Bill is trying to face because vigilantism in its ordinary meaning doesn’t mean what the Bill is trying to convene. So the committee is critically analyzing or exploring all the issue so that at the end of the day, we can have something to communicate. Some of the concern has been taken on board, they are now being examined and at the appropriate time, we will speak to them,” he said.
The dialogue on ending the unlawful activities of political vigilantism between the New Patriotic Party and the National Democratic Congress resumed today, Monday.
At their last meeting, the two parties agreed to commence the discussion with key stakeholders and experts, including representatives of civil society organizations, security agencies, and religious bodies.
The meeting, which is at the instance of President Nana AddoDankwa Akufo-Addo, is being mediated by the National Peace Council.
President Nana Akufo-Addo during his 2019 State of the Nation Address called on the leadership of the two leading political parties to meet and find a lasting solution to political vigilantism in the country.
The first meeting on the matter generated a lot of controversy with the parties accusing each other of bad faith.
The General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Asiedu Nketia expressed disappointment in the outcome of the first meeting.
Speaking on Eyewitness News after the meeting earlier in April, Asiedu Nketia said his expectations were not met because the NPP and NDC could not agree on the scope of discussion.
“Generally the summary of my impression is that I was disappointed about the outcome of the meeting,” he said.