The Vigilantism and Related Offences Act, 2019 (Act 999) and the War on Vigilantism in Ghana

An Appraisal

Bibliographic Data

ID6414106
AuthorsGilbert Arhinful Aidoo (University of Education, Winneba, corresponding author), Thomas Prehi Botchway (0000-0002-5275-7537, University of Education, Winneba)
Year2025
Pages1-26
Publication date2025-07-08
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrican and Asian Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1569-2094 • E-ISSN: 1569-2108
PublisherBrill (PUBLISHER • NL)
DOI10.1163/15692108-bja10048
OpenAlexW6903433948
LanguageEN
References cited8

Political vigilantism is a major blot on Ghana’s enviable democracy. The Act 999 was therefore adopted to criminalize acts of vigilantism in Ghana. However, after six years, negligible efforts have been made to enforce it. This paper examines how the act proposes to address the menace, the practical measures taken to enforce it, and highlights the factors delaying its enforcement. Data was obtained through expert interviews, published reports, books and journal articles. The study found that few efforts have been made to fully enforce the law, and that even though Act 999 provides severe sanctioning rules relative to the laws prior to its adoption, it also treats vigilantism as misdemeanor. It was therefore recommended that the political coloration of crimes should be discouraged: crime is crime, and must be treated as such regardless of who commits it

Asian studies · Human rights · Human trafficking · Politics · Spanish Civil War · Corruption and Economic Development · Political Conflict and Governance · Wildlife Conservation and Criminology Analyses

Tools

Open DOI