CenPOA condemns vote buying in NDC Ayawaso East Primary

The Centre for Public Opinion and Awareness (CenPOA) has raised serious concerns over alleged vote buying during the recent National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary primary, warning that such practices threaten the party’s historical identity and the integrity of Ghana’s internal democracy.

In an article authored by CenPOA Executive Director, Michael Donyina Mensah, the organisation noted that recent reports of aspirants distributing money, food and other inducements to delegates in the Ayawaso East primary follow similar allegations from the New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential primary held in January 2026.

CenPOA described this trend as “particularly disturbing” for the NDC, given its founding principles of probity, accountability, social justice and anti-corruption.

Tracing the party’s ideological roots to the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) era, under Flight Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings, the piece highlights how anti-corruption values were central to the party’s identity.

Under civilian leadership in the Fourth Republic, leaders such as President John Evans Atta Mills reinforced this image, earning widespread respect for integrity, modesty, and firm rejection of corruption.

“Reports of vote buying within the NDC primary represent a clear deviation from the party’s founding ideals,” the CenPOA article stated.

While vote buying has long been associated with Ghanaian politics, particularly within the NP and evidence now suggests that inducement-based practices may be gaining deeper roots within the NDC.

CenPOA also noted that the problem appears to have been exacerbated during the tenure of President John Dramani Mahama (2012–2017), citing concerns over political financing, patronage networks and weak enforcement of internal party discipline.

The organisation, however, welcomed recent corrective actions, including President Mahama’s public condemnation of the alleged acts, initiation of internal investigations and the recall of an ambassador who was actively contesting in the primary, a move that addressed clear conflicts of interest.

CenPOA stressed, though, that condemnation alone is insufficient, calling for structural reforms to tackle the root causes of vote buying.

Among the recommendations, CenPOA urged the NDC to revisit the expanded delegate system introduced in 2015, which broadened participation in internal elections and reduced the influence of small, easily targeted delegate pools, a measure shown to diminish inducement-based politics.

“Ultimately, vote buying is not merely an NDC problem, it is a national democratic problem.

Yet for a party whose origins are rooted in a radical rejection of corruption and moral decay, the stakes are undeniably higher.”

CenPOA concluded that reclaiming the party’s moral heritage is not an exercise in nostalgia, but a democratic necessity aligned with Ghana’s constitutional ideals and the NDC’s founding promise.

 

 

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