Dr. Kobby Mensah, a political marketing strategist at the University of Ghana Business School, has advised political parties to adopt universal suffrage as a way to prevent 'pay for votes' in internal elections.
He suggested that expanding the electoral college to include all registered members of the party, not just delegates, would make it much more difficult for candidates in internal party elections to buy their way through.
‘Moneycracy’
Dr. Mensah stated in an interview with the Daily Graphic that'moneycracy,' which had characterized party primaries for years, posed a danger to the country's democratic successes.
As a result, he has urged the Electoral Commission (EC) and security agencies such as the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) to investigate any claims of votes being transferred for cash and prosecute those responsible.
Dr. Mensah stated, "It is not appropriate for a democracy to suffer such a high level of payments."
"Obviously, if you have to be paid for your vote, I don't believe that is legal from a constitutional standpoint. Even though it isn't illegal, politicians who have been seen and verified paying such money for votes should face some consequences. At the very least, they may be barred from voting in future polls "He was adamant.
Money smugglers
If the condition is not addressed, "we will be selling our country to money launderers or criminal cartels," according to Dr. Mensah. Someone with that kind of money could effectively seize control of the country by endorsing politicians "..
He said that the financial resources required to engage in vote buying was a precursor to corruption and may influence elected officials' judgments.
Factionalism
Dr. Mensah also cautioned against the perils of growing factionalism among political organizations.
He attributed factionalism to a lack of faith in internal party surveys, as well as worries over the creation of delegates' lists.
"Factions form when politicians who will be running for national office protect their interests by putting people in positions that will benefit them." People don't trust the internal party election process, so they take matters into their own hands to guarantee that it is fair, just, and generates reliable outcomes," he added.
Factionalism, according to Dr. Mensah, benefits no one and demonstrates to the broader public that a party is not unified.
Members of a losing group remained away from the polls when this happened, he stated, underlining that factions exist but that right procedures must be taken to reign them in, especially after primaries.
Mechanisms
Dr. Mensah asked the EC and political parties to develop tools to combat corruption.