THE CONCEPT OF PROGRAMMATIC PARTIES, RELEVANCE OF

THE CONCEPT IN THE GHANAIAN CONTEXT: GENERAL

ANALYSIS ON THE ARGUMENTS AGAINST AND IN SUPPORT OF

THE PROGRAMMATIC NATURE OF POLITICAL PARTIES IN

GHANA.

OWUSU NSIAH ISAAC

This article analyses the concept of programmatic parties. It seeks to illuminate the comprehensive

analyses of programmaticity as far as political parties are concerned in liberal democracies. I have

stated conspicuously the various dimensions that underpin the general idea of what a programmatic

party is as championed by several scholars and political scientists. This paper also critically identifies

the relevance of the concept of programmatic parties in the Ghanaian context. Preference is given to

the New patriotic party (NPP) and National democratic congress (NDC) as they have alternated

political power since the inception of the fourth republic. This concept is relevant as the paper

elucidates that, it shows the nature of political parties in Ghana, thus whether they are just political

or electoral machines that find their way through to win elections through patron client networks or

make broad credible, plausible commitments to the citizenry, engage the populace in issue based

politics that provide the citizens with reasons to vote these parties into power. I have identified

several critiques that have been raised by several scholars, that the Ghanaian politics is characterized

by neopatrimonialism and populist politics thus Ghanaian parties non programmatic. This paper

finally argues strongly that Ghanaian political parties are fit to be categorized in the programmatic

sense.

KEY WORDS: programmatic party, political party, neopatrimonialism, populist politics

democracy, NPP/NDC, Ghana.

INTRODUCTION.

Political parties are universally regarded as essential components of democratic regimes and

key vehicles in the process of securing political representation, mobilizing voters, organizing

government and shaping public policy (see Webb 2005). Also political parties today are

often perceived in very negative terms; they are being regarded as weak and thus , do not

ensure the democratic deepening of various states .In democratic societies, political parties

are therefore indispensable voluntary and informal associations of society, where people

share commonly understood values customs and attitudes to their role in politics. They are

products of and operate within economic structures, and in a context of interests that are

affected by and respond to the accumulation and distribution of goodwill and resources,

including the wealth of society (Leiserson 1955).Across several democratic states, studies of

electoral competition reveal variations in the capacity of political parties to compete on the

basis of clearly articulated issue –based programs.(kitschelt and Smyth 2002).

Democratically political parties are supposed to forge ties with citizens based on clearly

articulated issue positions. rational choice theorist endorsing downsian analyses believe that

voters have specific preferences regarding redistributive policies and that they select

parties that are close to their positions in policy space(Denters 1993).Public policies are

more than technocratic decisions, they are about shaping the countries future. Citizens

must therefore have a say. Without political parties the intermediary role between citizens

and their government’s policy making democracies risk losing legitimacy and meaning.

When elections become popular context, citizens cast their votes, without exercising a real

choice concerning how they envision the future of their country, thus undermining the

entire notion of democracy. Political parties in many liberal democracies struggle to make

the shift from relying on personalities and clientelistic forms to debating and implementing

policies and platforms. The programmatic development seems to have taken hold in brazil

and south Korea (see Luna 2012).Lindberg (2008), asserts that the core institution of

modern liberal democracy whereby the right of the people to self-government can be

exercised is competitive and participatory elections. The extent to which elections fulfill that

mission is to a significant extent dependent on citizens rationales for how they behave at

the pools . if the voters behavior is determined by non-evaluative rationales such as

clientelism , then the purpose of self-rule by representative government is defeated. I

support this assertion because, there should be broad credible commitments made to the

citizenry, issue based politics should be the order of the day, in order to provide mandate for

parties to control state resources. This as a results ensue democratic deepening.

This paper focuses on the concept of programmatic parties, that is the general theoretical

comprehension of what constitutes a programmatic party.it makes clear the various

dimensions and underpinnings that help to erect what programmaticity means as far as

political parties are concernend.This article also tries to analyze and bring to light several

definitions of programmatic parties by prominent scholars and political scientists. Next we

examine the relevance of the concept of programmatic parties in the Ghanaian context,

finding out the nature of political parties in Ghana as preference is given to the NDC and

the NPP.We then critically analyze the various assertions of several scholars that supports

the non- programmatic nature of political parties in Ghana. Finally we shine the spot light

on the programmatic nature of political parties in Ghana, clear cut arguments and evidences

that liberate Ghanaian political parties from the various critiques of these scholars and thus

characterize these political parties in the programmatic sense. We then draw some general

conclusions from the study of programmatic parties.

The concept of programmatic parties: a definitional analysis

The international institute for democratic and electoral assistance (IDEA) is an

intergovernmental organization with mission to support sustainable democracy worldwide.

The objectives of this institution are to support stronger democratic institutions and

processes and a more sustainable , effective and legitimacy democracy.as part of their

researches the institution came to note and observe that democracy in several states were

weak and thus political parties in such democracies were functioning contrary to the ideals

of democracy.programmatization is a complex notion , political parties are not simply

programmatic or non-programmatic .several scholars and political scientists have provided

explanations and definitions for constitutes a programmatic party.

Luna (2012) provides some underpinnings and dimensions that facilitate the comprehension

of programmatic parties. In his definitional analysis, a party is said to be programmatic

when it has a well-structured and stable ideological commitments that constitutes the basis

for a. the link between its constituencies b. electoral competition among parties c. the policy

making process. According to Luna ideally to be classified as programmatic a party needs to

behave accordingly in all three arenas. To provide an in-depth insight a programmatic

party undertakes structuring of its programs and also engages in issue based politics which

serves as linkages to voters rather than (clientelistic or charismatic), seeks to implement its

programs when in office (government), organizes the party in ways that facilitates

construction, diffusion, and reproduction of its programmatic platform. Kitschelt (2012),

asserts that programmatic parties are considered to have a.a collective policy positions that

constitutes a well-structured and stable political programs by which the party is publicly known.

b .internal coherence and agreement on a range of policy positions .c. a commitment and the

ability to deliver on at least some key programmatic promises when in a position of power. d. a

party programs that is the most defining element in how it attracts and engages its members . A

true programmatic party would not motivate support using patron client networks, nor

make appeals and advocate policies that are critically designed to achieve the interest of just

one group. There is an ideal type ( see Luna 2012). Several countries were covered by his

case study , only the PT in brazil could be categorized as a fully programmatic party.

Diamond and frank (2001), defines a programmatic party as an organized political party

mainly found around election campaigns , have three characteristics ; having a more

distinct , consistent and coherent programmatic or ideological agenda, clearly incorporates

those ideological or programmatic appeals in its electoral campaigns and its legislation and

government agenda. Programmatic party proposes a manifesto, which offers the potential

for gains for some groups, but they are free to vote for it or not (Aidoo 2010). According to

aidoo, if a party wins, those policies are pursued and members of those groups in question

benefit from the policies and those who did not vote for the party also benefits. Based on

proper analysis of the explanations and definitions by these scholars I have also come up

with a very precise and concise definition for a programmatic party.

I define a programmatic party as a party that has an ideological congruence( set of beliefs that

binds all members together), well-structured cardinal plan that embodies their coherent and

consistent party programs , engages the citizenry in issue based politics , thus create voter

linkages by making broad national credible commitments to the people in order to obtain

mandate to ascend the reins of government.

Relevance of the concept of programmatic parties in the Ghanaian context:

arguments supporting the non-programmatic nature of political parties in

Ghana.

The concept of programmatic parties is relevant in the Ghanaian context to a significant

extent, because it gives insight into the nature of political parties that exist in Ghana, that is

whether these political parties are just electoral or political machines that maneuver their

way through the capturing of political power based on several factors ranging from those

that undermine the quality and effectiveness of democracy such as neopatrimonialism ,

clientelism, populist politics and on the other hand factors that enhance, facilitates and

sustains democracy, such as issue based politics , programmaticity, that gives the citizens

meaning to cast their ballot in favour of a political party. Also the concept provides a

yardstick that helps to measure the extent to which political parties in Ghana are well

structured, fit into the various definitions proposed by several scholars, as a matter of fact

can be categorized in the programmatic sense. Issues of parties inability to ensure credible

or broad national programs and policies are hotly debated in the third world new

democracies, particularly Ghana. (Cromwell 2005, Whitfield 2009).

In sub-Saharan Africa, neopatrimonialism has been employed extensively to explain

Africa’s internal politics. And as such, its focus exclusively on internal dynamics of African

politics serves as the basis for externalist linking neopatrimonialism and Africa’s political

trouble just as the dependency theorists have linked Africa’s underdevelopment with

dependency syndrome (Aidoo and DeMarco, 2009). Political parties within these countries,

of which Ghana is not an exception, according to several scholars are not programmatic but

rather find their way through as electoral machines to obtain power through patron client

networks and control state resources. neopatrimonialism has been used both as theory and

concept by several Scholars (Lindberg, 2003; Gyimah-Boad, 2001; Aidoo and

DeMarco2009). With regard to neopatrimonialism as a theory, scholars usually see it as

being responsible for economic policy failures in Africa in the 1980s during which most

African states pursued Western designed economic development strategies (e.g. Structural

Adjustment Programme) ( see Hayden 1985, Gyimah-Boadi, 2001). As a

concept,neopatrimonialism has extensively been conceptualized to cover, the nature of

African state including; level of authority, power politics, political legitimacy, elections,

corruption, nepotism, paternalism, cronyism, privatization and presidentialism (see brobey

2013).

There has been several scholarly arguments that, Ghanaian political parties are not

programmatic and thus neopartimonialism(clientelism, patronage etc) and also populism or

populist politics have taken center stage as far as the body politic is concerned. Keefer and

World Bank (2006) describe Ghana’s political system as being characterized by “pure

neopatrimonialism,’ Booth and Gyimah-Boadi (2005) contend that Ghana is characterized

by populist politics, others such as Nugent et al (2009) argue that Ghana’s politics is the big

men type. Populist politics is the attempt to gain political support using paternalistic

policies, in the form of income redistribution (Aidoo, 2010; Jockers et al, 2004). Booth et al.

(2006) refer to the populist politics as the strength of political incentives in a country to

pursue policies that benefit narrow groups in society (clientelist policies) .with the populist

politics, the political elite deliberately, design a policy and programme be it economic or

social in outlook with the intension to canvas for or mobilize political supports. Usually,

such policy, project or programme is tailored to the particular need of the people within a

particular geographic coverage. Such policy, project or programme is purposive one and it is

normally designed to satisfy ethnic, religious or regional consideration.

In the Ghanaian context, there have been policies pursued by political elites that reflect

purely populist politics according to these scholars. For example, rural electrification and

Quality Grains policies of former president Rawlings and NDC regimes (electricity power

was supplied to areas that did not make economic sense and Ms Cotton’s rice Scandal)

(GNA, April, 1996); Capitation Grants; and School Feeding Programme, NYEP as well as

rice tariffs policies of President Kufuor and finally, President Mills’ rice project in the

SADA policy (Okyere-Darko, 2010). All these policies, to a large extent, though far from

exclusion, reflect deliberate attempts by the politicians to tie specific policies to electorates’

votes (Van de Walle, 2007). Booth et al. (2006) note that populist politics has become

necessary because vigorous competition for votes in Ghana has not reduced, and this

perhaps, has highlighted the attraction of politicians to making clientelist appeals for

political support. However, this populist politics has not yielded the desired results within

Ghana’s polarized political economy, as implementation of these policies have often been

occasioned by populist logic. (see brobbey 2013) . Whitfield (2009) asserts and reinforces

that competitive neo-patrimonial argument by positing that policies pursued by Ghanaian

politicians reflect a competitive clientelism. In contrast, Booth et al. (2006) think they are

rather populist. Aidoo (2010) argues that when the political parties are out of power they

project programmatic policies because there is no way they can afford to push and sustain

neo-patrimonialism – after all they have empty pockets when out of power. However, these

political parties when in power resort to populist or patronage programmes, because they

have the means - after all they control state resources. These are some of the arguments that

have been raised by several scholars against the programmatic nature of political parties in

Ghana resources.

Contrary to the assertions above, Lindberg and Morrison (2008) argue that recent evidence

shows that political parties in Ghana have as programmatic parties and this is demonstrated

by the fact that Ghanaians in particular neither vote on ethnic line nor clientelistic basis.

Rather, they vote on the basis of evaluation of past performance and that makes new

democracies a "mature" one.

Programmatic nature of political parties in Ghana (case of the

NPP and the NDC)

This phase of the paper analyses critically the programmatic nature of political parties in

Ghana and thus raise a counter reaction to the various assertions made by several scholars

and finally conclude that political parties in Ghana can be categorized in the programmatic

sense. Preference is given to the NPP and the NDC as they have alternated political power

and thus have contributed a lot to the democratic deepening and consolidation of the nation

Ghana. For proper comprehension of the programmatic nature of these political parties in

Ghana, ordely consideration is given to the various definitions serving as dimensional

measures and underpinings that helps to categorize a political party in the programmatic

sense.one of the various faults that I find with these scholars are that they fail to incoperate

the various reseaches by the IDEA concerning programmatic parties as far as their

definitional analysis are concerned that will help comprehend the concept in the Ghanaian

context.

For proper assessments and analyses on the programmatic nature of political parties in

Ghana my definition for programmatic parties is used to measure the programmaticity of

these parties since I have incorporated various definitions by various scholars in to my point

of view. I define a programmatic part as a party that has an ideological congruence( set of

beliefs that binds all members together), well-structured cardinal plan that embodies their

coherent and consistent party programs , engages the citizenry in issue based politics , thus create

voter linkages by making broad national credible commitments to the people in order to obtain

mandate to ascend the reins of government.with this definition, it is then made conspiocuous

that Ghanaian political parties are programmatic.

Ghana’s political parties lay claim to traditions, core beliefs, creeds or philosophies (these

are known as ideologies.whitfield (2009) asserts that the explanation of the level of

competiveness in the 2008 elections was as the results of a de facto two party system and

thus the existence of credible oppositions at elections. He also elucidates further that the de

facto two party system was as a results of the political traditions of these two political

parties. These two political traditions were the Danquah- Busia tradition and Nkrumanist

tradition. These two political parties to a larger extent according to whitfield have provided

founding mythologies, ideological images and distinct political styles, around which elites

gravitate and voters are mobilized. Article 5 of the NDC’s constitution states that ,The Party

is a Social Democratic Party that believes in the equality and the egalitarian treatment of all

persons of their social,cultural,educational, political, religious and economic relations in a

multi-party environment’ (NDC 1992). The new patriotic party (NPP) on the other hand

has always espoused an ideology of property-owing democracy. Although the party was

formed in 1992, it has consistently held onto this ideology since the days of the UGCC and

later national liberation movement and the united party and has followed the articulation of

that ideology, especially J.B Danquah and K. A Busia (see ayee 2009).

The NDC and the NPP have produced six manifestos each between 1992 and 2012 .These

manifestoes contained their coherent and broad national programs that they have at least

fulfilled majority of them. Each manifesto focused on the intentions of the parties to

promote development, introduce changes and make Ghana a better place for its citizens to

enjoy thenational ‘cake’ equitably. Even though the documents include short-, medium- and

long-term plans, the manifestos are largely seen as promises and specific strategic policy

initiatives to be implemented within a four-year term. (see ayee 2009). The manifestos did,

however, usefully catalogue the problems and challenges facing the country and how they

can be addressed. They have become a useful place to catalogue the nation’s priorities.

Some of the key recurring issues covered by the manifestos of both the NDC and NPP

between 1992 and 2008, most of which have also featured in the manifestos of other

political parties since independence, include

the imperative for good governance, economic concerns, employment, the role of the

private sector, challenges to agriculture, improving basic service delivery, the

decentralization question, securing peace and stability, fighting the narcotic

menace,Ghana’s international role and relationships, and the discovery of oil. Other issues

include the environment, gender equality, crime, energy and chieftaincy (see ayee 2009).

Both the NDC and the NPP, to achieve the objectives of their manifestos, formulated broad

development plans and strategies. The NDC’s strategies were contained in Vision2020: The

First Step: 1996_2000 and the First Medium-Term Development Plan, 1997_2000. The

NPP, on the other hand, published the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy, 2003_2005 and

the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy, 2006_2009 and

Adopted the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative in 2001.The extent to which

the manifesto objectives were realized can be gleaned from the state of the nation address in

2004 and 2008 and the parties’ respective manifestos. Independent literature has also

substantiated or corroborated the parties’ own statements on their achievements. For the

NDC, its achievementsinclude the following: (i) an improved macroeconomic environment

characterized by an upward turn in growth, savings and investment; (ii) an expanded and

improved national infrastructure, especially in road, port rehabilitation, electricity

generation and distribution especially in the rural areas, and a vastly improved radio

andtelecommunications network; (iii) the restoration of incentives for exports throughthe

abolition of import licensing and a liberalisation of the foreign exchange regime;(iv) a solid

health infrastructure with a system of teaching, regional and districthospitals and health

centres; (v) a more reliable water delivery and sanitation systemthat had appropriately

distinguished between the water needs of urban and rural

dwellers and developed systems to reflect those needs; (vi) the introduction of theGhana

Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to support the financing of education and education-

related expenditure; and (vii) an agricultural policy and program that hadresulted in the

acclamation of Ghana’s Food Production Index of 148% as ‘the thirdlargest achievement in

the record after Jordan (157%) and China (156%) by theWorld Bank’s 1999_2000

Development Report’.

The NPP, on the other hand, can point to the following legacy: (i) an internationally

recognized good governance regime which has enlarged the freedoms of the individual

citizen, institutions and the press through the repeal of the Criminal Libel Law; (ii) passing

the Procurement Act, Whistleblower Act and other legal measures on public accounting to

tackle corruption; (iii) earning US$547 million from the US government through the

Millennium Challenge Account because of good governance; (iv) increase of the District

Assemblies Common Fund from 5% to

7.5%; (v) the introduction of the National Youth Employment Programme in 2004which

created 108 000 jobs; and (vi) the introduction of the National Health Insurance Scheme in

2003 to replace the ‘cash-and-carry’ under the NDC, School Feeding Programme,

Capitation Grant and Metro Buses. These are all broad national programmes that were

carried out by both the NPP and the NDC(see ayee 2011).

Policies and programs in the manifestos have since 1992 influenced voting patterns and

voter motivations were amply demonstrated in the 2008 elections in Ghana. Voting patterns

of elections in Ghana show that the influence of manifestos cannot be simply ignored; they

contained the policies and programs of the parties which were being marketed to the

electorate through campaigns, advertisements and debates by presidential candidates. For

instance, it has been demonstrated that voting patterns of elections in Ghana since 1992

apart from ethnicity were also influenced by the quality of governance and poverty levels

and the ideologies and programs of the two parties. Similarly, the NDC’s ‘I care for you’

manifesto message and making poverty reduction the main focus of its campaign promises,

touting investment in people, jobs, the economy and making government more transparent

and accountable, were part of its

trump card in the 2008 elections. The electorate saw this message as more appealing and

deliverable than the NPP’s message which fought the elections on its record of eight years in

office and focused on four thematic areas, namely, strengthening the country’s democracy,

structural transformation of the economy and industrialisation,regional and continental

integration and the modernization of Ghanaian society (see ayee 2009 ,2011) .The

electorates in Ghana are evaluative of the various performances of these parties as far as

their performances are concerned and thus influence their decisions to cast their ballot in

favour of a political party.

CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION

The general objectives of this paper have been a critical analysis on what constitutes a

programmatic party, the concept’s relevance in the Ghanaian context as far as political

parties in Ghana are concerned as preference was given to the NPP and the NDC as they

have once been in opposition and in government since the inception of the fourth republican

dispensation. General arguments were raised as championed by several scholars and

political scientists that supported the non-programmatic nature of Ghanaian political

parties. On the other hand factual evidences clearly stated that these political parties are

programmatic. I explained a programmatic party as a party that has an ideological

congruence( set of beliefs that binds all members together), well-structured cardinal plan that

embodies their coherent and consistent party programs , engages the citizenry in issue based

politics , thus create voter linkages by making broad national credible commitments to the

people in order to obtain mandate to ascend the reins of government. This definition was

generated due to the incorporation of several definitions by various scholars and political

scientists. Generally this definition provided the dimension in which political parties were

measured as being programmatic. The concept was linked into the Ghanaian context to

help us understand whether these parties were just electoral machines who maneuvered

their way through by employing several undemocratic strategies such as clientelism,

patronage politics, and populist strategy to capture political power. Several scholars

supported this assertion that political parties in Ghana are non-programmatic (see brobbey

2013). They attached populist politics to Ghanaian political parties explaining that these

political parties resort to making policies that is tailored to suit certain section of the country

in order to win votes and also distribute incentives in order to gain political support in

return. As I raise a critique to these assertions, I think that what these scholars fail to

understand is that democracy is about the majority and as a matter of fact, the various

evidences have shown that the NPP and the NDC have provided several manifestoes that

covered broadly almost the various needs of the nation at large, and thus these coherent

programmes served as the means to obtain the mandate of the electorates. Several examples

of these broad national programmes have been bodly chalked (.ayee 2011)

This paper has shown that even though there are several undemocratic factors or varaibles

that characterize the body poltic and thus single out political parties in Ghana namely the

NPP and the NDC as being non programmatic ,thus the employment of clientelistic

measures,or populist politics in order to win political power , the various evidences, factual

details and the underpinings of the working definition of programmatic parties that have

been provided , it is bodly chalked , that Ghanaian political parties can be fully

characterized in the programmatic sense.

REFERENCES

Ayee R.E.J (2009) the evolution and development of the New Patriotic party in Ghana

Ayee, R.E.J (2011. ) Manifestos and elections in Ghana’s Fourth Republic.

Bratton M and Van de Walle N (1997). Democratic Experiments in Africa: Regime

Transitions in Comparative Perspective

Brobbey Adu Bempah C. (2013) Neopatrimonial logic and national programmatic policies

in Ghana: A case of rice importation and production policies under the administrations of J.A.

Kuffuor and J.E.A. Mills

Cromwell E, Chintedza A (2005). “Neopatrimonialism and Policy Processes”: Lessons from

the Southern African Food Crisis, IDS

Diamond L, Gunther F (2001). “Political Parties and Democracy,” John Hopkins

University Press.

Gyimah- boadi(2006) A peaceful turnover in Ghana

Gyimah-Boadi E,(2009) ‘Another step forward for Ghana’, Journal of Democracy,

International institute for democratic and electoral assistance (IDEA) 2012

Jockers H, and Kohnert D, Nugent P (2010). “The Successful Ghana Election of 2008 –a

Convenient Myth?” Journal of Modern African Studies

Kheefer and World Bank (2005). “The Neopatrimonial Institutions and Impact on

Development”:

Kitschelt H, Wilkinson S (2007). “Citizen-Politician Linkages: an introduction.”

Kitschelt Herbert (2012) economic development , democratic experience and political

parties linkage strategies.

Kitschelt Herbert and Regina Smyth (2002) programmatic party cohesion in emerging post-

communist democracies.

Kojo Opoku Aidoo and Peter DeMarco, (2009) The Neopatrimonial Framework and Military

Coup d’état in Africa: Reflections Reseach

Kojo Opoku Aidoo( 2008) political participation , governance and neopatrimonial rule in

Africa

Leiserson A (1995) parties and politics: an institutional and behavioral approach

Lindberg S I, and Morrison C K (2008). “Are Political Parties in Ghana Programmatic?

“Ghana, Meeting the Challenge of Accelerated and Shared Growth system .

Luna Juan P F(2006) programmatic and non-programmatic party voter linkages in two

institutionalized party systems . Chile and Uruguay in comparative perspective

Luna Juan P F (2012). Programmatic parties: the international institute of democratic and electoral

assistance research.

National Democratic Congress (NDC). 1992. Constitution. Accra: NDC

New patriotic party’s manifesto for 2008 election year.

Paul Webb (2005) the presidentialization of politics : a comparative study of modern

democracies

Whitefield L (2009) change for a better Ghana: party institutionalization and alternation in

Ghana’s 2008 elections.