Ransford Gyampo, an associate professor in the Political Science Department of the University of Ghana, Legon is proposing that a cap should be placed on the expenditure of presidential candidates.
A study carried out by the Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) reveals that a presidential candidate in Ghana needs at least US$100 million to win an election.
Reacting to the report, Prof Gyampo said until such a measure is instituted the country risk losing the fight against corruption.
“I have seen the CDD report on how much people spend to win elections in Ghana. But who pays to serve? Don’t we rather serve and get paid? Until we figure out a ceiling of spending in elections, we will continue to lose the battle against corruption,” Gyampo posted on Facebook.
Background
The findings of the study also show that parliamentary candidates need at least GHC4 million to win a seat highlighting how Ghana’s political space has been monetised.
The research findings were shared by a representative of CDD-Ghana, Saadija Shiraz, during an engagement with the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and some political parties.
Speaking in an interview with Asaase News, Shiraz said the situation needs to be addressed immediately to encourage participation in democracy.
Breakdown of study
“In 2021 a study was conducted by CDD to assess the extent to which illicit and illegal money move into our politics, and as part of the findings, the study sought to determine how much the cost of politics was.
“In the current estimate per this statement, running for Parliament was GHC4 million, out of this amount two million is dedicated towards nurturing constituencies and the other two million is after the securing of the candidature position,” Shiraz said.
“And for the cost for running for president, the study estimated that the most viable sum of money that a person who needed to run for president was US$100 million… this is why we need to engage in conversations more to reform the state of monetisation of Ghana’s politics,” she added.
Fred Dzakpata
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