GACC calls for amendment of the political party’s act to ensure transparency in political funding

The Executive Secretary of the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, Madam Beauty Nartey is calling for the amendment of the Political Party’s Act to help track transparency in political campaign funding.

Speaking to some journalists at a workshop organised to educate and train journalists on the theme of safeguarding Ghana’s stability in the face of serious and organised crime threats during the 2024 elections, she revealed that most campaign-audited resources submitted to the Electoral Commission do not go through the Political Party’s accounts, which makes it difficult to track the exact amount they receive and who finances them.

Madam Nartey added that if measures are not put in place, we will soon have foreigners interfering in our elections and participating in our electoral process by appointing people they want.

“When you talk about elections, there is a connection between serious organised crime and some of our elections because, when you look at the cost of elections, it is mind-boggling how one candidate would be able to generate those funds by themselves without necessarily being funded by other means.

Unfortunately for us, our Political Party Act does not provide us with a transparent process where we even identify people who are political financiers.

To this end, he said they have conducted research that has proven that there is some connection between political party financiers and organised crime.

She stressed that journalists ought to be well-armed with information so they would be able to sensitise the general public in their reportage and also identify crucial places in their investigation and unearth these things, adding that until we can expose corruption,
Ghana will not progress.

She added that we have to expose those who are engaged in illegal activities and financing political party activities so they will be prosecuted.

Also, the deputy director of legal and prosecution for EOCO, Leo Anthony Asiamah, charged the media to educate and create the right awareness that leads to a peaceful election.

The Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, in collaboration with the Ghana Integrity Initiative, the Africa Centre for Energy Policy, and the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, organised a media capacity-building workshop on serious organised crime threats during the elections.

Sammy Darko, who is a member of the office of the special prosecutor, urged Ghanaians in his presentation to channel the same energy they used to kick against LGBTQI towards the fight against corruption.