Why the law must be amended to criminalise vote buying in intra-party elections
Last Saturday's Parliamentary primary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Ayawaso East constituency and the associated allegations of vote buying have renewed the debate over whether Ghana’s electoral laws on vote buying/selling should be extended to include intra-political party elections.
The current law makes a provision for punishment for public election offences, but does not clearly cover intra-party elections.
There is the notion that extending the law to cover intra-party elections will be the first step to stemming the now rampant vote-buying, intimidation, violence, and other issues that have become associated with such elections.
Speaking in a radio interview monitored by Graphic Online on Citi FM on Monday, [February 9, 2026], the Director of Strategy, Research and Communication at the Office of Special Prosecutor (OSP), Mr Samuel Appiah Darko, described the practice of vote buying as a national security threat, which requires action by law enforcement agencies.
He said the current challenges suggest that a coordinated approach is needed for it to be raised to the level of a national security threat, for all hands to be on deck in the fight.
He urged the National Security Council to treat vote buying and selling as a security concern.
Mr Darko said such a designation would require security and law enforcement agencies to intervene when corrupt practices are detected, rather than leaving the matter outside their immediate scope.
The OSP on Sunday announced that it had opened investigations into alleged vote buying, vote selling and funding sources linked to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential primary held on January 31, 2026 and the NDC parliamentary primary in Ayawaso East held on February 7, 2026.
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The OSP also said investigators were examining an alleged assault on an authorised OSP officer during the NDC primary.
Mr Darko said the OSP monitors elections in real time and discloses findings when sufficient evidence is gathered and public interest requires publication.
In a separate interview monitored by Graphic Online on Radio Gold on Monday [February 9, 2026], the Deputy General Secretary of the NDC, Mustapha Foyo Gbande, said the party had constituted an internal committee made up of senior party elders to investigate the allegations.
“We have set up a committee led by senior party elders to investigate all aspirants and delegates involved. Its objective is to establish the facts and ensure the credibility and integrity of the primary. Any disciplinary action will be guided strictly by the evidence and the law,” he said.
Mr Gbande said the party’s inquiry would proceed independently and did not defer to the OSP investigation, adding that the process was intended to address accountability within the party.
Under the law, vote buying and related corrupt practices constitute criminal offences in public elections. Section 33 of the Representation of the People Law, 1992 (PNDC Law 284) makes it an offence to offer money, gifts or inducements to influence a person’s vote, with penalties including fines, imprisonment and disqualification from voting.
Current statutes, including PNDC Law 284 and the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), apply to offences committed in public elections and do not expressly cover internal party contests. This gap has been cited as a reason allegations arising from party primaries rarely lead to prosecution.
Pressure group OccupyGhana has over the years called for amendments to extend the law to misconduct in internal elections.
In October 2023, the group wrote to the Attorney General and parliament urging the introduction of legislation to criminalise vote buying and related conduct in intra-party contests.
Following the Ayawaso East primary, a convenor of OccupyGhana, Mr Ace Anan Ankomah, restated the position on February 9, 2026.
“Although vote buying is a crime in public elections, it is not a crime in intra-party elections,” he said, urging Parliament to amend the law and noting that earlier appeals to lawmakers had not produced legislative action.
