By: Abigail Wiafe
Vote buying has become an issue in the lead up to elections. It is a strategy adopted by most Political leaders to influence Electorates to vote in a particular way. Vote buying can be in forms like cash transfers, Clothing or even food.
Bribery and vote buying are a common component in the lead up to any elections. Vote buying also referred to as electoral clientelism occurs when a Political Party or Candidate distributes money or resources to an electorate in an upcoming election to persuade him or her to vote in a particular way. Among Ghanaians surveyed by Afrobarometer, 49 percent say voters are often or always bribed, with 26 percent saying sometimes. More recently, 69 percent of people in the pre-election survey said it was very likely or likely for parties and candidates to buy votes.
In an interview with the Director of Training at the Electoral Commission of Ghana, Michael Boadu, he advised that citizens should under no circumstances sell their rights to any Political Party. He urged both Politicians and Ghanaians in general to desist from vote buying.
“Voting is ones right, once you qualify to do so. Under no circumstance should you sell that right to anyone for a piece of bread, money or what ever it is. Because if you do that you compromise your very rights and your citizenship, you sell it off to someone and that person becomes your Lord and controls you”, he said.
The President of the Ghana Journalists Association, Albert Kwabena Dwumfour, has also discouraged citizens from allowing themselves to be bribed during election moments. He urged citizens to rather be vigilant and critically scrutinize manifestoes of Political Parties before voting for them. He affirmed that once a citizen is induced with money to vote for a particular political leader, it amounts to conscience sale.
“Politicians cannot buy your conscience, when they use strategy, it means that we the citizens have sold our conscience. You cannot blame politicians, for them they will induce you, but when they induce you, and you go to the polls on that faithful day, it is you and the ballot paper, politician is not there. You have to let your conscience guide you. Look at the state of the economy, look at your personal state as an individual. Where do you expect Ghana to be from the day you are casting your election? That will inform where to cast your vote and not politicians giving you money”, he said.
A section of the Public also think it is a wrong strategy employed by Politicians in order to win elections. They urged all Ghanaians to desist with all their will attempts by some Politicians to influence their Political preferences.
