INVESTIGATION ON MONETIZATION OF POLITICS AND IMPLICATION ON GHANA DEMOCRACY

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1. Background of the Study

Globally,  the distinguishing feature of modern democracies, particularly known as liberal democracies, is their intricate, legally regulated, and monitored framework of regulations concerning party, campaign, and candidate funding. This framework aims to prevent any direct occurrences (or at least the perception) of party or candidate bribery. Contrarily, the practice of privately supporting political parties and electoral campaigns has been a longtime tradition in all democracies. However, it has also raised significant concerns for the consolidation of democracy, since it may lead to corruption and, in sophisticated democracies, a kind of legalised "influence peddling" (Onah and Nwali, 2018). Essentially, the rising expenses associated with organising parties and election campaigns in modern democracies have led political parties and politicians to increasingly rely on affluent people and influential interest groups for financial donations.

According to Bratton (2020) elections serve as a barometer for democratic institutions, making them crucial to the development of a nation and its voters. It guarantees the strengthening of democratic fundamentals such as the rule of law, voting confidentiality, power separation, judicial independence, and many more. Citizens can therefore participate in government through elections. Elections therefore provide the people a chance to choose their leaders. In any democracy, elections—more precisely, voting—are crucial processes for choosing leaders for public office. Elections enable candidates to appeal to and clarify their intended policies to electorates prior to being voted into power, which helps to aggregate preferences, choose more qualified public officials, and incentivize politicians to act in the best interests of the voters they represent (Akwetey 2016). However, the quality of elections still varies greatly in some developing nations, particularly in Africa, where there have been issues with ballot fraud, intimidation, multiple voting, low voter education, snatching ballot boxes, violence, offering out electoral incentives or buying votes, among other things (Gans-Morse, Mazzuca, & Nichter 2021).

Monetization, in a political context, refers to the trade of voting rights by citizens in return for money and associated resources. It involves politicians offering payments to voters and intermediaries in order to gain access to political power, disguised as electoral competition. This pertains to those who actively seek support or votes for a political party, as well as political financiers who contribute essential financial resources (Bob-Milliar, 2022). Money serves as a common goal for both the people and the politician, and the private financier meets their mutual demands. In this context, votes possess a monetary worth, and it is a well-established fact that the practice of converting money into votes has existed for as long as representative systems have been in place, particularly within democratic frameworks.This suggests that in developing nations, there is a lack of strict and effectively implemented norms and regulations regarding political contributions (Babeiya, 2021). This implies that the regulation of private funding in politics, particularly in relation to campaign and election costs, is almost non-existent, and it can be challenging to accurately monitor the influx of money into the system, especially in an institutionally fragile setting. For instance, although the Beninese Chamber of Accounts had the responsibility to oversee campaign finance, it did not possess the necessary resources and authority to effectively carry out this task. Under criticism, a previous President of the organisation described it as 'meaningless'. Therefore, in a developing nation, where there is a heavy dependence on misappropriated public funds and bribes, vote buying occurs more overtly due to the challenging economic conditions, including poverty and chronic capitalism (Lassou et al., 2021).

According to Kramon (2023), political parties use certain tactics to buy voters' support. Activating passive supporters or demobilising aggressive opponents may be the main goals of the methods. While the latter might be referred to as "participation buying," the former is frequently referred to as "negative" vote buying or "abstention buying." These tactics could be used to discourage voters from casting ballots or guarantee a high turnout, but it's still unclear how the parties decide which tactic to use when providing incentives for voting or purchasing votes. However which ever way or whenever monetization of politics comes to play, the underlying implication for credible election and democratic sustainability becomes questionable.

1. 1. Statement of the problem

In recent times, politics has increasingly been conceived in monetary terms reinforcing the constant need for capture for political financing. In Ghana, monetization of votes appears to have become the norm, both in national and internal party elections. The problem stems from the significant poverty rate among the voting population. Where vote buying is more open (as opposed to the legalized forms in developed economies), citizens use the money received in exchange for his/her vote to buy food, pay, healthcare etc.essence, they exchange their vote for money so as to address their most pressing needs, which is why difficult economic conditions are a major contributing factor to the monetization of politics. According to Onah and Nwali (2018), the significance of money in political involvement implies that it has an impact on almost every interaction, competition, and role inside the political process. According to Onah and Nwali (2018), McCaffrey (2020) highlights the significant impact of money on the political process in industrialised nations. Moreover, the significant importance assigned to money in the political process extends beyond incentivizing voters and includes the expenses necessary to support the entire election process. However, Ghanaian politicians tend to commercialise their public and political positions, with the practice of paying voters contributing to the expenses associated with obtaining political power. This situation necessitates the acquisition of greater financial resources which distorts the political selection process, and renders the electoral competition a democratic façade.

Although studies exist on the impact of vote buying on electorate, there is more need to conduct a recent review on the implication of money politics on nascent democracy. Upon this premise the researcher seeks to investigate investigation on Monetization of Politics and implication on Ghana democracy.

1.3 Objective of the study

The main aim of this is investigation on Monetization of Politics and implication on Ghana democracy.. Other specific objectives includes;

1. To investigate the extent at which money politics prevail in Ghana Electoral Process.

2. To ascertain the compelling factors that promotes Monetization of Politics in Ghana.

3. To examine the implication of monetizing politics on Ghana democratic sustainability.

1.4 Research Questions

1. What is the extent at which money politics prevail in Ghana Electoral Process?

2. What are the compelling factors that promotes Monetization of Politics in Ghana?

3. What are the implication of monetizing politics on Ghana democratic sustainability?

1.5Research Hypotheses

Ho: There is no significant implication of Monetization of Politics on Ghana democratic sustainability.

Hi: There is significant implication of Monetization of Politics on Ghana democratic sustainability.

1.6 Significance of the study

This research is significant in such a way that it electoral bodies, civil societies, and non-state actors through the result of the study would develop a framework spearheaded to strengthen democracy by mounting vigorous campaigns to educate the electorates not to accept financial or material rewards before they vote for a particular candidate or party as this amount to selling one’s conscience. It also x-rays the fundamental factors associated with vote buying culture and ultimately recommends ways for obviating them. It will serve as an eye opener to researchers, government officials and general readers who truly intend to understand the impediment to democratic consolidation in Ghana. Again, it will serve to sensitize the public and create awareness as to the destructive potentials of election malpractice towards the aspiration for democratization in Ghana. Empirically, the study will contribute to body of knowledge and serve as a reference material to student and scholars who wishes to conduct further studies in related field.

1.6 Scope of the study

1. The scope of this study borders on s investigation on Monetization of Politics and implication on Ghana democracy. The study will further discuss extent at which money politics prevail in Ghana Electoral Process, ascertain the compelling factors that promotes Monetization of Politics in Ghana, examine the implication of monetizing politics on Ghana democratic sustainability . The study will draw its participant from public servant in Ashanti Region Ghana .

1.7 Limitation of the study

The researchers encountered slight constraints while carrying out the study. The significant constraint was the scanty literature on the subject owing that monetization politics discourse is vast thus the researcher incurred more financial expenses and much time was required in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature, or information and in the process of data collection, which is why the researcher resorted to a limited choice of sample size covering only potential voters in Ashanti Region Ghana . Thus findings of this study cannot be used for generalization for other District within Ghana. Additionally, the researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work will impede maximum devotion to the research. Howbeit, despite the constraint encountered during the research, all factors were downplayed in other to give the best and make the research successful.

1.8 Definition of terms

Election: An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. 

Politics Monetization : This occurs when citizens exchange their voting rights for financial and related resources and politicians pay voters and intermediaries to access political office under the guise of electoral competition.

Democratic Sustainability: Sustainable democracy is not only the institutionalization of elections, but also the economic, political and environmental resources necessary for rational decision-making. A sustainable democracy requires strong institutions, reliable structures, and active citizens.

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