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CLAIM: Social media posts claim that vote buying in political party primaries is “a crime punishable by law” following allegations that a candidate in the NDC’s Ayawaso East primary distributed 32-inch television sets, cash, and other items to delegates.
VERDICT: Misleading! While vote-buying in public elections is a crime under Ghanaian law, party primaries may not be classified as “public elections” under existing legislation, creating a legal grey area.
Full Text
Following the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Ayawaso East parliamentary primary held in January 2025, widespread allegations emerged on social media that Mohammed Baba Jamal Ahmed distributed inducements to delegates, including television sets and cash amounts of GH₵10,000.
Multiple Facebook posts, including those by Adda DyNelson, alleged that this constitutes criminal vote-buying. One viral post stated: “Vote buying is a crime punishable by law” and criticised the NDC leadership for not annulling the elections.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor announced investigations into allegations of vote-buying involving both the NDC and the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
The NDC itself established a three-member committee to investigate the allegations in Ayawaso East.
As part of our mandate to promote truth and accurate information in public discourse, DUBAWA decided to verify the claim and to ascertain if indeed vote-buying in internal elections is indeed a crime in the country’s criminal jurisprudence.
Verification
DUBAWA examined the relevant legal provisions governing electoral offences in Ghana.
The Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), and the Representation of the People Act, 1992 (PNDCL 284), both contain provisions criminalising vote-buying, bribery, and electoral inducements. Convicted persons face fines, imprisonment, and disqualification from voting.
However, these statutes specifically refer to “public elections.”
According to Article 49 of the 1992 Constitution, public elections include:
- Presidential elections
- Parliamentary elections
- District Assembly elections
- Unit Committee elections
- Referenda
Notably absent from this list are political party primaries and internal party elections.
A legal practitioner, Kofi Opare Hagan, consulted on the matter and confirmed: “I do not think party primaries are classified as public elections under the relevant legislation.”
The lawyer noted that while Article 55(5) of the Constitution requires political parties to conform to democratic principles in their internal organisation and activities, violations of this provision would not automatically constitute a criminal offence.
“If an internal election is so flawed by vote buying that it would be contrary to that positive duty under Article 55.5… But that still won’t make it a crime,” the lawyer explained.
The High Court or the Supreme Court could exercise oversight of party organisation under Article 55(5), but this would constitute administrative or constitutional enforcement rather than criminal prosecution.
Ghanaian lawyer Ace Ankomah also highlighted a critical loophole in the country’s electoral laws, revealing that while vote buying is a crime in national elections, no such criminal sanctions exist for the same conduct during internal party primaries and elections.
In a statement on the issue, Ankomah warned that the normalisation of vote-buying in party contests poses a grave threat to Ghana’s democratic system, yet remains legally unpunished due to ambiguities in electoral legislation.
“The reality is that although vote-buying is a crime in public elections, it is not a crime in intra-party elections,” Ankomah stated.
The lawyer explained that both the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and the Representation of the People Act, 1992 (PNDCL 284) contain elaborate provisions criminalising vote-buying, with convicted persons liable to fines, imprisonment, and disqualification from voting.
However, these statutes refer only to “public elections,” which, under Article 49 of the Constitution, may not include party primaries and intra-party elections.
“This might explain why we see no prosecutions when these happen,” Ankomah observed, noting that the provisions are “hardly seen to be enforced” even in public elections.
Key findings:
- Vote buying in public elections is criminalised under Acts 29 and PNDCL 284
- Party primaries are not explicitly included in the constitutional definition of “public elections.”
- While party primaries may violate constitutional principles under Article 55(5), this does not make them criminal offences under current legislation
- Enforcement mechanisms exist primarily through party disciplinary processes and potential judicial oversight, not criminal prosecution
Conclusion
The claim that vote buying in party primaries is “a crime punishable by law” is misleading.
While such conduct may violate the constitutional requirement for democratic party organisation and could attract sanctions from party structures or judicial intervention, it does not appear to fall within the scope of existing criminal statutes, which specifically target “public elections.”
Unless legislation is amended to explicitly include party primaries within the definition of public elections, criminal prosecution for vote buying in internal party contests remains legally uncertain.
