Former President of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings, argues that for democratic governance to be a success, the power of political parties needs to reside in the will of the people and should not be seen as an avenue for self-enrichment or serve the interests of an elite few.

Speaking at the Fifth Electoral Institute for the Sustainability of Democracy in Africa (Eisa) Annual Symposium in Johannesburg, Rawlings provided recommendations on some of the issues that need to be addressed in promoting multiparty democracy on the African continent. The theme for this years symposium was - Setting Benchmarks for Enhanced Political Party Performance for Democratic Governance in Africa.

On different types of democracy, Rawlings explained that there is no template for successful democracy in each Africa country. Rather, the democratic system needs to customised to suite the unique indigenous needs of each countries culture. "This is a direct manifestation of the party political power residing in the hands of the people", he added.

Speaking to delegates ranging from different political parties, civil-society members, regional body representatives and academics, Rawlings pointed out that most of the challenges faced by opposition political parties are not a result of a lack of resources or personal, but are rather a direct result of the abuse of the party political machinery for individual self-enrichment.

He touched on ruling party and opposition dynamics, and explained that the prevailing mindset needed to change in the way that ruling parties often enforce their will on the opposition due to their access to state resources and greater political capacity. Opposition parties are a manifestation of minority views of the people and the ultimate function of political parties is to serve the people, he said. Through this rationale, he argued for greater political tolerance in order to serve the people they are meant to represent.

Rawlings also touched on the contentious issue of campaign funding. "Too often the poor are abused and votes are bought at the expense of ones conscience", he said. He called for the promotion of voting rights and for more transparency in party campaign spending through each county's electoral code.

Finally, he called on the symposium delegates to come up with constructive ideas on how to foster democracy with the internal, and external, political party space.