Prof Ransford Gyampo, a political science lecturer at the University of Ghana, has urged for immediate action to reduce the country’s massive political finance and election financing.
He has stated that until real methods to combat the scourge are given, corruption would continue to be the country’s main setback.
The monetisation of politics in Ghana has long been a source of debate, particularly following general elections in which politicians spend large quantities of money to ensure victory.
This frequently hurts the chances of minor parties and individuals who want to run for certain ministries during the elections.
While some have blamed the situation on Ghanaians’ demands before elections, others believe political parties should use various tactics to raise funding.
“I keep asking myself, who pays to go serve if it’s the notion of going to serve?” Isn’t it rather the case that you go serve and be compensated by the folks you’re serving?”
“A lot of money goes into campaigning, and individuals spend a lot of money merely to serve, and it should raise suspicions if people are paying the type of money that the CDD has lately come up with,” Prof. Gyampo remarked on Prime Morning.
He claims that because politicians spend so much money to gain power, they frequently resort to illegal measures to replace funds they spent before getting elected.
“When they come to power, they will have to recoup the money they spent on electioneering campaigns at any cost, which means they will have to dip their hands into state coffers to replenish what they spent, and to dip their hands small into the coffers to get more money to prepare for the next elections.”
“If they are going to retire, they must pay more in order to be able to keep and take care of themselves when they retire,” he told Benjamin Akakpo on Thursday.
CDD Research
According to a recent study conducted by the Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), presidential contenders will require at least $100 million to win an election in Ghana.
According to the research, parliamentary hopefuls must pay roughly $4 million to secure a constituency seat.
The research aimed to examine certain unlawful and illegal movements in local politics and to gain a sense of how much money is invested in politics.