A former Auditor-General, Daniel Domelevo, has called out politicians for attempting to justify the distribution of money mostly during internal elections under the guise of transportation expenses.

Contributing to the topic of vote-buying on JoyNews' PM Express, Mr Domelevo argued that such practices were, in reality, strategies to influence and buy votes, likening the electoral process to auctions rather than genuine democratic elections.

“As for the politicians, they will deceive us and tell us that the money they distribute during primaries or elections is not a bribe but for transportation. They can call it whatever they want. But we are not idiots; we know these are monies to influence and buy votes,” he said on Tuesday.

Mr Domelevo subsequently urged Ghanaians to reflect on the current state of electoral practices and consider measures to address it.

He emphasized the need for a constitutional review to facilitate the work of the Special Prosecutor or any relevant agency in the fight against corruption.

While acknowledging the inherent challenges in combating corruption, he noted that the re-evaluation of the country’s supreme law is a crucial starting point to win this fight.

“We must make our laws a bit friendly, because fighting corruption is difficult. Corruption is one thing that getting people convicted for it is not easy so we must make the laws such that once we can establish beyond all reasonable doubt that this money didn’t come from your sources of income, the onus should lie on you to prove that the funds are genuine.

“But let’s even grant it without admitting that those sources are genuine, is that what we’re expecting to do as a country?” he quizzed. “Now people are publicly threatening that ‘if you don’t pay me, I am not going to exercise my civil responsibility. This is going too far.

However, a Deputy General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mustapha Gbande, held a different view.

He claimed the monies given were largely meant to motivate delegates for their dedication to building the party’s grassroots.

Nonetheless, he argued that political appointees who distribute money during elections ought to be queried to ascertain the source of the funds.