Asiedu Nketia Advocates for State Funding of Party Primaries, Cites 2014 GH¢14 Million
Asiedu Nketia Urges Government Support for Funding Political Party Primaries
- NDC Chair Asiedu Nketia calls on the government to fund internal party primaries to ease financial burdens.
- He revealed that the 2014 one-member-one-vote exercise cost the NDC nearly GH¢14 million, with the EC bearing no costs.
- He advocates for establishing a regulatory body to ensure only qualified organizations receive state support and suggests EC involvement to reduce costs.
Johnson Asiedu Nketia, the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has called on the government to financially support political parties in conducting internal primaries through the Electoral Commission (EC).
He emphasized that the high costs associated with organizing nationwide primaries, especially under the one-member-one-vote system, could impose a significant financial burden on political parties.
His appeal comes in the wake of a Supreme Court directive mandating political parties to adopt a more inclusive candidate selection process, with a one-year deadline for compliance.
During an interview on PM Express on JoyNews, Mr. Nketia revealed that the NDC spent nearly GH¢14 million in 2014 to carry out its internal elections using the one-member-one-vote system.
The party established over 8,000 polling stations nationwide, covering costs for election materials and allowances for officials appointed by the Electoral Commission. He pointed out that the EC did not contribute financially to the exercise.
He argued that since the one-member-one-vote approach encourages broader participation from party members, the state should consider funding this process to ease financial pressures on political parties.
He further explained that involving the EC would significantly reduce the biggest cost component—the expenses borne by the electoral body.
