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Former Member of Parliament for Amenfi Central, George Kofi Arthur has revealed that it costs at least GH₵500,000 to contest for a parliamentary seat in the country.
Breaking it down on Adom FM’s Burning Issues, Mr. Arthur said the cost of buying forms alone is GH₵2,000 and submission costs GH₵25,000, plus extra expenses.
In view of that, the politician opined that politics in the country has become very expensive, making it difficult for young, patriotic and qualified individuals to contest.
“If care is not taken, no graduate will be able to contest for Member of Parliament in the next coming years. He will need not less than GH₵500,000 which is 5 billion old cedis to be able to contest and I can break it down for you to understand”.
“You need GH₵2,000 to buy the form and filing alone is GH₵25,000. Regionals cost GH₵5,000 after that you pay GH₵5,000 for Constituency. In total, you spend GH₵37,000 [buying and filing forms at all levels]
“After that, you think of primaries which also demands posters, vehicles and other things then EC [Electoral Commission] comes in. So if after all these expenses you lose, everything goes wasted,” he explained.
Members of Parliament, according to George Kofi Arthur, are the ones who suffer the most, despite being Article 71 office holders.
He claims legislators go through serious financial constraints.
“Although we are holders of the Article 71 (sic), but we are those who suffer a lot. Have the public asked how we fuel our cars. The same people who wished my loss as a Member of Parliament also wish I get it back after I lost it.”
“Have you ever heard Parliament embarking on strike before, have you seen it before. Let Parliament go on strike and see what happens. What we go through the public don’t see,” he lamented.
His lamentation comes after a section of Ghanaians questioned why Article 71 holders, including MPs, receive ex-gratia every four years.
Source: myJoy
