By: Samuel Duodo
The Executive Director of the African Centre for Parliamentary Affairs (ACEPA), Dr Rasheed Draman, has urged the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to support reforms to promote transparency, fairness and equal opportunities in political competition.
He said political parties often champion campaign finance reforms while in opposition but lose interest once they assume power, stressing that a fair campaign financing regime would give all political actors an equal opportunity to contest elections and strengthen democratic governance.
Dr Draman made the call in an interview on the sidelines of the three-day High-Level Regional Convening on the Financialisation of Politics in Africa which opened in Accra last Tuesday.
Threat
Dr Draman said the growing influence of money in politics was undermining democracy in Africa by allowing financial power, rather than ideas and competence, to determine political leadership.
He said the situation weakened accountability because elected leaders often became answerable to those who financed their campaigns instead of the electorate, with adverse consequences for public service delivery, including healthcare and education.
“The summit is about the role of money in politics in Africa — the financialisation of our democracy.
Money now determines who gets power and not ideas,” he said.
Declaration
Dr Draman said participants at the summit would adopt an Accra Declaration containing practical recommendations to help African countries curb the excessive influence of money in politics and strengthen democratic governance.
He said the issue required urgent attention because financiers of political campaigns often wielded undue influence over public decision-making at the expense of the broader public interest.
Legal framework
Dr Draman called for a comprehensive political campaign financing law to regulate campaign funding and provide a framework for enforcement and accountability.
“If we can pass a very good law on political campaign financing, at least we will have a framework.
Citizens can seek legal redress if the law is violated and future leaders will have a basis to enforce it,” he said.
He expressed the hope that the summit would produce concrete policy actions across the continent rather than another declaration.
Source: Daily Graphic
