How many of our elected MPs, and elected party executives can honestly raise their hands and swear they’ve never induced a single delegate with money, gifts, or promises?
We all know the truth. The outrage only surfaces when the cameras are rolling and the spotlight is bright.
The only way to end vote buying is to make it impossible to buy votes. This is not rocket science. The NDC had a wonderful system in 2015. All party members in a constituency had a say in who becomes the party’s candidate.
People infiltrated our register (there was nothing wrong with an expanded electoral college system). Instead of fixing the loopholes, we scrapped it and reverted to the corrupt system that everyone had decried as not helping. All we needed to do was to fix the loopholes, tighten verification, enforce strict rules and protect the system. But no. We wanted a quick fix.
But for the system that gave everyone a chance at being elected, I would never have won the primary in 2015 and become MP for Kumbungu in 2017. And when I complained and petitioned about the 2019 primary, it all fell on deaf ears. I was called bad loser and bitter.
Today we pretend to be angry because some got TV and others cash? We had it coming. Let’s stop pretending and start demanding real reforms that actually stop the cash-for-votes game once and for all
Source: newsthemegh.com