The political season is upon us and the conversation about the buying of votes has once again reared its head. Vote-buying can be described as an economic transaction in which parties and candidates distribute material benefits to individual citizens in exchange for their support at the polls. The practice of buying votes is both illegal and corrupt but, even greater than being wrong, vote-buying perverts a democratic system.

The main principle in a democracy is that the majority rules. The political parties are expected to campaign and to provide the better argument, thus convincing the majority that they have the better message and vision. In Jamaica, where it is seen that parties increasingly offer incentives in order to garner support, the practice seems to be getting more and more widespread. This view is supported by the “snapshot survey” conducted by Dr Herbert Gayle during the last general election in November 2011 where he found that vote-buying was evident in 26 of the 27 constituencies that were surveyed. Vote-buying will, therefore, greatly impact which party/candidate gets the majority of the votes.

If vote-buying is allowed to affect both voter turnout and choice, then political accountability and equality are at risk. This is particularly the case given the disproportionate influence of vote-buying on the most vulnerable members of the society that arguably have a greater need than the community in which they reside. Given that this group is most likely to be the people that vote on election day, they will have an overwhelming impact on the election result. Elected officials, therefore, will have no one to be accountable to. This is both because it can be said they have already paid for their post and also because they were not elected based on their accountability.

Some claim that vote-buying does not affect the voting process. If this is the case, what could explain the increase in vote-buying in Jamaica? Vote-buyers usually target potential ‘swing’ voters for vote-buying. And, as it turns out, there appears to be an increased willingness of voters to openly declare that they need to be paid to vote. The question that needs to be asked is, ‘Why are votes being sold?’

The answer to this is simple: A failed democracy. The fact that votes are being sold highlights the fact that there is a breakdown in the Jamaican democratic system. The fact that there is a market for votes implies an inefficiency in the democratic system. Having to give incentives to your own supporters in order to ensure that you have their continued support reveals the fact that these supporters have no confidence in the ability of the candidate to govern. More often than not, voters feel that after the candidate’s party is made government they will not see benefits. This is highlighted in the fact that the electors usually only see their members of parliament when it is close to an election to ensure re-election. As such, voters feel more comfortable getting the small incentives pre-election because there is no guarantee that they will get anything after the election. That is, government of the people, by the people, but not for the people.

If this is the case, then the democratic system has failed.

‘Vote-selling, for some, is the only benefit that is received from the electoral process. A system where a person cannot find a party or candidate that they would vote for is not a democracy. That means that if a particular party is not performing or is not accountable, then there must be another to replace that party. If there is no such party, there is a flaw in the fundamentals of a democratic system and selling of votes only perpetuates this flawed system.

It is clear that there is a problem in the country. Vote-buying needs to end. The solution is simple: Enforce the law as written in Section 91 of the Representation of the People’s Act, which makes it illegal for any person to use money or other valuable consideration to procure votes or have somebody refrain from voting. Jamaicans need to know that vote-buying is a crime that is punishable by a fine ranging from $20,000 to $80,000.00 and/or imprisonment from three to five years. There needs to be monitoring of campaign spending and disciplinary actions need to be taken if any member of a political party is found to be connected to vote-buying.

But more importantly, it must be realised that our democratic system is failing. The democracy needs to be strengthened; firstly by educating the masses, and secondly by uprooting corruption within politics. Government needs to start being for the people and not to line the pockets of politicians. Our leaders have to be held accountable.

Omar Francis is vice-president of Generation 2000 (G2K). Send comments to the Observer or omar_francis_29@hotmail.com.