Paying GH¢5,000 to declare intention to contest as MP amounts to monetisation of democracy – Amaliba jabs NPP

The Director-General of the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA), Abraham Amaliba, has criticised the New Patriotic Party's (NPP) decision to charge prospective parliamentary candidates GH¢5,000 to declare their intention to contest in the party's primaries, describing it as the monetisation of democracy.

He argued that requiring aspirants to pay before they can formally express interest in contesting undermines democratic participation and places an additional financial burden on those seeking to represent their constituencies.

Speaking on Accra-based TV3's New Day programme on Friday, October 30, he said, “Paying GH¢5,000 to declare your intention to contest as a parliamentary candidate amounts to the monetisation of our democracy."

This follows the NPP's announcement of new guidelines for selecting its parliamentary candidates ahead of the 2028 general elections.

Under the new guidelines announced by the party, prospective parliamentary aspirants are required to submit their expressions of interest online between November 1 and 10, through its designated portal.

Each applicant is expected to pay GH¢5,000 and undergo a vetting and screening exercise to determine their eligibility.

The requirements apply to all aspirants, including incumbent Members of Parliament.

The party has also scheduled capacity-building workshops for prospective candidates in December across the Northern, Middle and Southern zones.

It has, however, maintained its directive suspending campaign activities until official clearance is granted.

However, Mr Amaliba questioned the justification for charging aspirants to declare their intention to contest, arguing that the party's vetting process should be sufficient to determine whether applicants meet the requirements.

“Which democracy in this world does what they are doing?” he questioned.