Vote-buying, vote-selling now done shamefully in broad daylight – Dr Afari-Gyan

A former Chairman of the Electoral Commission of Ghana (EC) Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan has lamented the brazen monetization in Ghana’s politics, decrying how open vote-buying and vote-selling are undermining our democratic practice as a Country.

Dr Afari-Gyan bemoaned how vote-buying and vote-selling, which were done in secrecy in the past but are now done shamefully in the full view of the public, constitute a threat to the ability of citizens to hold the political class accountable through elections.

Dr Afari-Gyan made this known today [ Monday, January 8] in a Constitution Day public lecture under the theme “Reflections on Our Democracy: The Constitution, Elections and the Judiciary held at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA).

“Vote-buying, in days gone by, whatever vote-buying or vote-selling there was, took place in secrecy. What we have now looks like an open market where candidates can freely buy votes and citizens can freely sell their votes in broad daylight while we all look on unconcerned,” he lamented.

He continued: “But it is a shameful spectacle because vote-buying and vote-selling are unlawful. And they undermine two important principles that underpin our democracy: vote-buying undermines the idea that we choose our leaders out of our free will, and vote-selling undermines the idea that we always hold our elected leaders accountable through elections…I believe that our democracy is stifled when election results cease to be a true representation of our verdict on the performance of our leaders. We cannot therefore hold them accountable through elections. That is precisely what the election open market portends.”

Vote-buying and vote-selling have become common practice in Ghanaian politics. In the recent presidential and parliamentary primary elections of the governing New Patriotic Party(NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), accusations of vote-buying were rife. But both parties denied buying votes, explaining in part that money given to delegates(voters) was for transportation and feeding.

The Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has reported massive vote-buying in Ghana’s politics, revealing that parties spend huge amounts to carry out campaigns, of which vote-buying is a major component.