The lawlessness, he said, was fast becoming a major characteristic of transitional periods and as such, required immediate attention to restore order.

Speaking to The Ghanaian Times in an interview on the back of similar lawlessness orchestrated by some people suspected to be supporters of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), which resulted in the unavailability of premix fuel at the James Town fishing harbour, Nii Abeo Kyerekuanda IV urged the political class to demonstrate the will to end the menace.

Since the turn of the year, incidences of violence and forceful takeovers and seizures of state assets and agencies as well as rampages to halt official events have characterised the transition of power from the old administration to the new government.

Various reports from across the country indicated that some victims of these violent acts were subjected to physical abuse, locked out of offices, while others had their devices and valuables destroyed.

According to Nii Abeo Kyerekuanda IV, these occurrences were as a result of the citizen’s lack of knowledge of their roles and responsibilities.

“The people resort to violence because they do not know what is required of them as citizens. There must be a conscious effort to inculcate in them the spirit of doing things that foster national unity and propel development,” he said.

Being citizens, he explained, must be communicated to mean acting rightly and justly within the remit of the law, rather than compelling people to act in ones favour or decorating oneself with the national colours.

The lawlessness, he said, was a dent on the democratic gains made by the country in recent years and further disrupts the relative peace and stability in the nation.

He appealed to the NCCE to, as a matter of urgency, embark on campaigns geared towards making the citizenry aware of their roles and responsibilities, and urged the political class to complement this by regularly reminding their supporters of the need to act in harmony with the law.

By Claude Nyarko Adams