By Anthony Adongo Apubeo, GNA
Bolgatanga, March 04, GNA – Mr William Nyarko, the Executive Director of the Africa Centre for International Law and Accountability (ACILA), has reiterated calls for the establishment of an independent body to register and regulate political parties and oversee campaign financing in Ghana.
He said the current legal framework, which placed the responsibility for regulating political parties on the Electoral Commission (EC), was inadequate to effectively address the growing challenges associated with unregulated campaign financing and the rising cost of politics.
Speaking at a governance forum in Bolgatanga, Mr Nyarko described unregulated political funding as “the underbelly of grand corruption” in Ghana.
He explained that illicit and undisclosed campaign contributions often resulted in inflated contracts and the misuse of public funds when beneficiaries assumed office.
“Political parties play key roles in our democracy. Though they are not state institutions, they are recognised under the Constitution and mandated to operate based on democratic principles. It is therefore crucial that they are properly regulated along those lines,” he said.
He noted that since Ghana’s return to multi-party politics in 1992, the cost of running for political office had steadily increased due to high nomination and filing fees as well as widespread vote buying and vote selling, particularly during intra-party elections.
According to him, a major gap in the existing Political Parties Act was that it regulated only political parties and not individual candidates, even though a significant portion of campaign contributions went directly to candidates.
“We estimate that about 90 per cent of contributions are given directly to candidates, yet they are not required by law to report on these contributions. That is a major loophole,” he stated.
Mr Nyarko said in many jurisdictions where improvements had been made in political finance regulation, candidates were required to disclose their sources of funding and account for how campaign funds were used.
He also pointed to the absence of a defined campaign period as another factor driving up the cost of politics, explaining that without clear timelines, candidates often begin campaigning immediately after elections and spend excessively over a four-year period.
He referenced recommendations by the Constitutional Review Committee, which proposed limiting campaign activities to 120 days before an election, setting spending and contribution limits, and strengthening transparency and accountability mechanisms.
Mr Nyarko expressed support for the committee’s recommendation to establish an independent body separate from the EC to register and regulate political parties and oversee campaign financing.
“We have seen how the EC has performed over the years in this regard, and it has been less than satisfactory, largely due to capacity constraints. Establishing a new, independent body with a clear mandate and adequate resources will strengthen enforcement and sanctions,” he said.
He cited the example of Kenya, where a new law established an independent institution to regulate political party financing and enforce compliance, separating that function from the electoral management body.
Mr Nyarko further advocated the extension of the criminalisation of vote buying to intra-party elections and reforms to expand participation in party primaries from limited delegate systems to universal suffrage for card-bearing party members in good standing.
He said broadening participation would make inducement more difficult and reduce the financial pressures associated with influencing small groups of delegates.
Mr Nyarko urged policymakers and stakeholders to prioritise reforms that would promote transparency, accountability and integrity in Ghana’s political financing system to safeguard the country’s democratic future.
The forum, held in Bolgatanga, was organised by the Center for Democratic Development Ghana (CDD-Ghana) in collaboration with the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), with support from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), to deliberate on a proposed model political finance law.
The proposed model is intended to contribute to efforts aimed at reducing or eliminating the influence of money in Ghana’s political and electoral landscape.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/Benjamin Mensah