A viral video has surfaced just hours before the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary primaries, showcasing numerous branded 32-inch smart television sets that are prepared to be given to delegates.
The television sets in the viral video are branded with what appears to be the image of Farouk Aliu Mahama, the Yendi MP running for the party’s primary seat a second time.
The MP Farouk Aliu Mahama’s branded image is shown on the television, even though InsightNewsgh.com is unable to independently confirm whether the Yendi MP is actually responsible for the act.
This video shows several 32 Smart TVs branded with images of the member of Parliament for Yendi, Alhaji Farouk Aliu Mahama which is allegedly set to be distributed to NPP delegates in the Yendi Constituency before Saturday's parliamentary primaries. pic.twitter.com/SJ4hM0kBBe
— EDHUB🌍ℹ (@eddie_wrt) January 26, 2024
Vote buying in elections and party primaries has been a source of concern over the years. Numerous people have stated that this is an act that violates national laws.
Party delegates and the general public have been urged by Haruna Mohammed, the deputy general secretary of the party, to report any instances of vote-buying in the upcoming polls.
According to him, the party does not support candidates based on the number of delegates they can provide.
“The NPP is very open to every reportage. Anybody who sees any evidence of somebody buying votes that we can rely on to be able to prosecute the agenda of making sure we cleanse out the system of vote-buying can come forward and the NPP will look at it and refer it to the appropriate quarters for redress,” he said on Joy FM.
Dr. Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, a former chair of the electoral commission, denounced the action and called it a “shameful spectacle.”
Dr. Afari-Gyan said “vote-buying undermines the idea that we choose our leaders out of our free will and vote-selling undermines the idea that we always hold our elected leaders accountable through elections.”
“I believe that our democracy is stifled when election results seize to be a true representation of our verdict on the performance of our leaders, we cannot therefore hold them accountable through elections. That is precisely what the election open market portends.”
