A t-shirt for your vote

by Valimbavaka Raherimananjara

With the constant political instabilities in Africa, I have always wondered: if democracy is not effective in the continent, is it that democracy itself is not compatible with the characteristics of the African continent, or is it that the continent has a different understanding of democracy? I have the impression that in Africa we tend to be satisfied with the fact that as long as there are elections where people can vote and their votes will be counted, we have a democracy. But have we really considered that there are many phenomena and relationships that are often overlooked behind the organisation of each election, such as political financing practices? If we analyse carefully, we realise that concerns about the transparency of campaign finance sources can drive a wedge between pro-democracy rhetoric and the reality of democracy in Africa. 

“Rajaonarimampianina, the victor, spent an estimated USD 43 million on campaigns, or USD 21.5 per vote obtained. This is almost double the amount spent per voter by Donald Trump in 2016 (USD 12.61)”

In Madagascar, 77.4% of the population lives below the international poverty line of USD 1.90 per day. Yet its election campaign is considered one of the most expensive in the world. Following the 2013 EU-funded election observation mission report, it was detailed that Hery Rajaonarimampianina, the victor, spent an estimated USD 43 million on campaigns, or USD 21.5 per vote obtained This is almost double the amount spent per voter by Donald Trump in 2016 (USD 12.61) and incomparable to the amount spent by François Hollande in 2012, which was only USD 1.47 per voter. In fact, if we look at the last presidential election in Madagascar in 2018, the current President of the Republic Andry Rajoelina and former Presidents Marc Ravalomanana and Hery Rajaonarimampianina spent millions of dollars to make their campaigns very ambitious. They organised free concerts for big Malagasy stars, rented private jets and helicopters for transportation of campaign materials and staff to the most remote districts of the country. As a result, the other thirty candidates remained almost inaudible and unrecognised by the public. You might ask, what is this huge amount of money for? Could it be that elections in Africa are merely formalities favouring certain political actors rather than tools for ensuring fair competition? This is not unique to Madagascar. In exploring the Kenyan presidential election in 2012, it is reported that Uhuru Kenyatta spent about $130,000,000, or $21.16 per vote obtained. The expenditure on event organisation, advertising and transportation of campaign materials as well as human resources, especially the purchase of helicopters and vehicles to facilitate movement across Kenya required a huge sum of money.

Apart from the practice of outrageous campaign financing, Kenya, like most African countries, is a country characterised by vote-buying. In Nigeria, although vote-buying is prohibited under Section 130 of the Electoral Act 2010, there are constant incidents of its occurrence, as evident in the September 28, 2016 governorship election in Edo State. As David O. comments, in Nigeria votes can be bought not only with money, but through chickens, goats, and cows as well. 

“There is evidence that voters in Africa, particularly in rural areas, tend to value the provision of gifts and goods and vote for those who distribute those in campaigns.”

Of course, it is only natural that the candidate with the most money has a better chance of winning the election than others. What then is wrong with offering T-shirts, gifts, or entertainment to citizens during election campaigns? Well, these tactics are not likely to corrupt the democratic process per se, as long as each voter has the right to secretly vote his or her choice in the ballot box. However, one must be careful when these tactics are targeted at poorer voters. Indeed, there is evidence that voters in Africa, particularly in rural areas, tend to value the provision of gifts and goods and vote for those who distribute those in campaigns. Thus, voters in Africa may be more concerned with receiving gifts than caring about the roles, responsibilities and policies of those elected. This assumption is not really surprising when one regards this situation with Maslow's Pyramid of Needs. In Mali, Nigeria, Malawi, Madagascar, Lesotho, and DRC, 70% of the population live in extreme poverty. Consequently, people still struggle to meet their basic needs, including feeding, accessing clean water and sanitation, as well as accessing health care.  If people still struggle to make ends meet, then it is normal that they are not motivated to care about politics. This is worsened by the fact that African political parties rarely interact with citizens outside of election periods, and their programmes are not always clear. Nevertheless, when politicians hand out money and/or gifts to voters, the voters tend to be convinced that they will be able to protect them and promote their interests in the future. Thus, money can not only decide who can run for office, it can also suggest who will eventually be elected.

It is impossible to contest elections without financial resources, as campaigns have to be paid for and large networks of political patronage have to be secured. However, excess money can completely undermine the political sphere of the country, as it is not given without ulterior motives  and consequences. Admittedly, some candidates  self-finance during election campaigns. Candidates for elections in African countries are generally very secretive about their sources of funding, and the election regulatory institutions fail to properly enforce the relevant laws for greater transparency. The danger of campaign financing is particularly present when the logic of 'he who pays the piper calls the tune' is followed. Not only does the political system risk promoting the interests of the wealthiest at the expense of the public’s general interest, but also powerful interests will attempt to manipulate public policy, public financial figures and resources.

With their economies going downhill like a snowball, African countries will always struggle to solve their problems, such as acute malnutrition, unemployment, lack of basic medical care, illiteracy among other pressing concerns. 

Thus, this analysis begs the question,  is democracy really causing the ruin of African countries through political financing? Perhaps it is time we explore a new form of government that works better for Africa other than democracy. In the meantime, however, it is important to provide policy tools to adequately regulate the financing of political parties and election campaigns. It is, I believe, time to restore the trust of Africans in their political leaders, and to rectify the disinterest and disempowerment of citizens in the political environment. To actualise this, it is essential to establish a real democratic culture within countries and to make citizens better understand the impact of their votes in order to avoid various forms of instability, which continue to plunge  the continent into chaos.