The National Democratic Congress (NDC) does not have any vigilante groups, the party’s Deputy General Secretary of the NDC, Peter Boamah Otokunor has said.

He said he knows of the party’s ‘Unit’ meant to secure the polls during elections – he was emphatic that “…they are not vigilante groups”

According to him, that unit is “necessary” since, in his view, the government is willing to intimidate its opponents with state security machinery.

His comments was in response to Inspector General of Police, David Asante-Apeatu’s warning that he will not spare political vigilantes.

According to the IGP, it is against the country’s laws for political parties to have such groups that have recently been disturbing the peace of the country.

But NDC’s Otokunor rubbished the IGP’s warning after describing him as the “worse and incompetent” IGP in the history of the country.

“He is trying to cover up for government with this warning. This is rather exposing his level of incompetency,” he added.

Many civil society organisations among others have called on both the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition NDC to end acts of vigilantism by disbanding their vigilante groups, since their existence poses a threat to Ghana’s democracy.

While the NPP can boast of groups like Delta Force based in the Ashanti Region, Kandahar Boys based in the Northern Region and the Invincible Forces based in the capital, Accra; the NDC can boast of the Hawks based in Accra, Azorka Boys in the Northern Region, the Dragons based in the Brong Ahafo Region and the Lions based in the Eastern Region.

Despite these groups, Peter Boamah Otokunor told NEAT FM’s morning show host Kwesi Aboagye on Friday, 15 February 2019 that the NDC has no vigilante groups.

“I don’t know of any vigilante groups in the NDC that we have trained them for combat,” he said.

Asiedu Nketia "Fully Endorses" NDC Hawks, Lions And Dragons

However, NDC General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia on September 5, 2019 defended the fresh emergence of vigilante groups within the NDC.

He told Joy News in an interview that the emergence of groups like Hawks is "an appropriate natural response" to the failure of the Akufo-Addo government to rein in its party vigilante groups.

"I endorse it fully", the NDC mastermind refused to condemn the Hawks who emerged at the Ashanti regional.

To him, although the party has not formed any such group it welcomes its creation because "self-preservation is the first law of nature".