Political Vigilante Groups in Ghana: Violence or Democracy?

Justice Richard Kwabena Owusu Kyei,Lidewyde H Berckmoes

doi:10.1177/0002039720970957

Justice Richard Kwabena Owusu Kyei, Lidewyde H Berckmoes

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1177/0002039720970957

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Abstract

Literature on political vigilante groups has centred on the violence and conflict that emanate from their activities. This article approaches political vigilante groups as political actors who engage in political mobilisation and participation and therewith also contribute to nation state building. It explores how such groups participate in Ghana’s democratic governance and asks whether violence is an inevitable characteristic. The article builds on individual in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with political vigilante group members in Kumasi and Tamale in 2019. Findings show that political vigilante “youth” appeared to refer primarily to the social position attributed to non-elite groups in the political field. Political vigilante groups are multi-faceted in their organisational structures, membership, and activities both during electoral campaigns and during governing periods. While some groups revert to violence occasionally, the study concludes that political vigilante groups, in enabling different voices to be heard, are also contributing to democratic governance.

Highlights

Since Ghana returned from military rule to democratic governance in 1993, Ghanaians have consistently gone to the polls every four years to change or retain government
That political vigilantism in Ghana extends beyond the electoral transition period into the governing era (CODEO, 2017: 1), and includes activities other than violence and supportive of democratic governance
Contrary to the narrative that political vigilantism is detrimental to democratic governance, we propose that political vigilante groups should be seen as political actors that engage in political mobilisation and participation, with potentially constructive contributions to democratic processes

Summary

Introduction

Since Ghana returned from military rule to democratic governance in 1993, Ghanaians have consistently gone to the polls every four years to change or retain government. Ghana’s democratic elections in the Fourth Republic have succeeded Huntington’s (1993) “turn over test.”. Ghana’s relatively stable and democratic trajectory is not devoid of violence. The violence has been attributed to youth groups within political parties. These youth groups within political parties are described by public opinion, civil societies, and some scholarly works in Ghana as political vigilante groups (Asamoah, 2020; Coalition of Domestic Election Observers [CODEO], 2017; Daddieh and Bob-M illiar, 2012; Paalo, 2017). That political vigilantism in Ghana extends beyond the electoral transition period into the governing era (CODEO, 2017: 1), and includes activities other than violence and supportive of democratic governance. A closer look at these groups show that “youth” should not be taken at face value

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