Accra, Sept 16 (The African Portal) – The Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has warned that the soaring cost of running for president risks shutting out capable leaders who lack vast financial resources.
Executive Director of CDD-Ghana, Professor H. Kwasi Prempeh, told an open forum in Accra that it now takes about $200m to mount a successful presidential campaign in the country.
“You now need about $200 million to win a presidential contest. How many of you can ever realistically be in that category? Even at the parliamentary and primary levels, the barriers are already far too high for many,” he said.
Prof Prempeh cautioned that if politics becomes dominated by the wealthy and well-connected, Ghana’s democratic and developmental progress would be undermined.
“We cannot have that kind of democracy and expect it to be developmental. That is why campaign financing and regulation of internal party democracy must become urgent national priorities,” he added.
