Mahama Ayariga petitions Special Prosecutor to probe corruption during NPP congress

The Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga has petitioned the Special Prosecutor to probe widespread reports of corruption and bribery in the recently-held New Patriotic Party (NPP) regional executives elections.

In his petition, Mr. Ayariga asked the Special Prosecutor to prosecute persons found culpable of corruption during the polls.

“I write to draw your attention to widespread reports in the social media which were equally discussed on the radio, that the offenses of corruption, bribery and undue influence did take place at the congresses of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to elect regional executives of the NPP,” the petition said.

He also tasked the Ghana Police Service to investigate these allegations and “develop tools for policing elections to political parties’ offices with a view to nip corruption in the bud.”

Mr. Ayariga’s petition is premised on the Representation of the People Law, 1992 (PNDCL 284) which makes bribery in public elections unlawful.

Corrupt acts including vote-buying among others, have characterized several elections in the country.

In 2020, the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD Ghana), through its foremost anti-corruption campaign platform, Corruption Watch, exposed how some aspirants in the NPP primaries at the time, allegedly influenced delegates using money and other items to garner votes.

Following the exposé, the Centre called on the Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to look into incidents of vote-buying in Ghana’s politics.