Political parties and politicians, during election years, dole out huge amounts of money on billboards across the country as part of election campaign methods.
Checks by Citi Business News show that it cost as much as 6,500 cedis to obtain a license from the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), to mount a billboard in the Greater Accra regional capital, Accra.
Also, politicians would be expected to pay about 15,000 cedis as rent for the advertising space they use during the elections.
Citi News’ Eugenia Tenkorang takes a look at the money involved in erecting these billboards and its impact on elections.
Interestingly, compared to past election years, most of the billboards mounted this time round also bear images of the various presidential candidates and their respective Member of Parliament nominees.
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According to some outdoor advertising companies, a client pays up to 10,000 cedis for a billboard per month depending on the size and location and 15,000 every month for super billboards with three faces.
Also, not all of the politicians dole out cash for their billboards as some outdoor advertisers approach the parties or candidates themselves and offer them huge discounts or free advertising spaces, with the hope of claiming those spaces after election.
The NPP candidate for Ododdiodoo, Nii Lantey Bannerman, confirmed this.
“What I have at the roundabout is an offer from someone…I do not even know how much that cost to build it.”
Meanwhile some electorates who spoke to Citi Business News expressed mixed reactions over the impact of billboards on their decision to vote for one candidate or another.
“The billboards which they have erected are meant for the electorate to remember that they are the people that are to be voted for. But actually for me I’m not looking at the billboards but I’m using my conscience to vote,” a seven time voter, Nii Amugi, stated.
“If someone will just be influenced by the high cost of billboards and vote for someone, then I think that is problematic,” another stated in a sharp contrast.
Yet another remarked, “In my view, the high costs of the billboards in the country especially during the campaign seasons, is a complete waste of money.”
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By: Eugenia Tenkorang/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana