Ghana must establish campaign financing framework to regulate campaign spending - William Nyarko

Mr William Nyarko, the Executive Director of the Africa Center for International Law and Accountability, says Ghana must establish a campaign financing framework to regulate campaign contributions and spending.

He said this would ensure transparency and accountability, prevent corruption and undue influence, level the playing field, enhance voter confidence, ensure that elected representatives truly represent the will of the people, and strengthen the country’s democratic institutions.

The Executive Director was speaking at a national forum on the effects of the monetisation of elections on the outcome of Ghana’s elections and advocating for meaningful reforms in Ghana’s campaign financing system.

It was organised by the Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition, Ghana Integrity Initiative, and the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development, with support from USAID through the International Foundation for Electoral Systems.

The project, titled “Monitoring Campaign Spending, Abuse of Incumbency, and Vote Buying for Comprehensive Party and Campaign Financing Reform in Ghana,” seeks to contribute to the comprehensive reform of party and campaign financing in Ghana.

Mr. Nyarko said voters must understand that when politicians distribute money or gifts during campaigns, they often recoup these funds through taxes by awarding inflated, single-sourced government contracts to their financial backers.

The Executive Director said this practice created financial burdens on the public and encouraged corruption, highlighting the need for transparent and regulated campaign financing.

He said campaign financing could fuel corruption, as candidates who received funds from individuals involved in illicit activities, like illegal mining, may feel compelled to protect these interests once in office, preventing effective action on critical issues.

Mr. Nyarko said even in the absence of a formal regulatory framework, the Electoral Commission should completely get rid of the filing fees from candidates to maintain its independence and ensure the integrity of the electoral process.

He suggested an alternative approach would be to use signatures as a means of qualification, where candidates could be required to gather a certain number of signatures, thereby reducing the financial barriers to entry.

“This approach acknowledges that elections are already funded by taxpayer money,” he added.

Dr. Bossman Asare, the Deputy Electoral Commissioner, said the Electoral Commission (EC) had put all the necessary measures in place to ensure another successful, credible, inclusive, and participatory general election.

He said the Commission had over 18,700,000 registered voters throughout the country and that in 2020, the EC recorded a voter turnout of almost 79 percent. This year, the Commission is working assiduously to maintain or increase that turnout.

The Deputy Electoral Commissioner said, “As a citizen, your primary responsibility is to exercise one of your fundamental human rights. Once you are a registered voter, the EC expects that come December 7, you will exercise your franchise and choose the person you want.”

He said the Commission had engaged professionals with expertise in statistics and mathematics to assist in the aggregation of results at the constituency, regional, and national levels.

Dr. Asare said citizens must actively demand their democracy, as it belongs to the people, not any individual or group. To safeguard it, citizens must ensure their active participation in the democratic process.

“It’s not good for somebody to give you money for you to vote for them; that’s not acceptable.”

“And I know campaign financing is an issue which we have to look at critically in Ghana. We see the parties campaigning, spending money, doing a whole lot of things, so we need to be sure where all this money is coming from,” he added.