Why APC Should Close Ranks In AMAC For Hon. Candido – By Emeka Oraetoka

In the next few weeks, all the registered parties for the Area Council elections will kick-off electioneering campaign in the Federal Capital Territory [FCT]; in line with the guideline of the Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] as contained in the Electoral Act.

For some time now, some All Progressives Congress [APC] members, ostensibly those loyal to one or two candidates that lost out in the last primary election of the party, have been protesting the disqualification of some aspirants in the said elections, on the pages of newspapers. Although, freedom of expression, which is the hallmark of democracy, allows for this protest by some members of the executive of the party at both the ward and AMAC level in favour of their preferred candidates. However, this writer’s worry is that since the protest started, none of the aspirants that contested the primary election or was disqualified by the screening panel has voiced out against the apparent injustice meted out to him or her. Another fact is that none of those protesting the disqualification of some candidates in the said primary election has alleged his disenfranchisement from voting at the Election Day. What is clear is that they all voted for their choice candidates during the primary elections. One had expected that once they discovered that there was injustice against any aspirant before the election, as they are alleging now, the right thing they would have done was to collectively resist the injustice they noted by forcing the party to do the right thing.

For these executive members to start agitation for the cancellation of the primary election after they had voted in the same election, shows double standard and disloyalty to peace and progress of the party in general. If they did not vote at the primary elections, their agitation would have held water in the first place. But having voted in the primary election, they lost legitimacy to openly protest for any candidate that was disqualified on the pages of national dallies. Although, they reserve the right to petition the leadership of the party on the disqualification, if they felt it was not right.          

The puzzle here is ,while the aspirants that lost out in the primary elections, as well as those disqualified by the screening committee, have not jointly or individually protested their predicament on the pages of newspapers; but the executive members of the party at the ward and AMAC level are crying more than the bereaved. The question here is why are they feeling the pain of disqualification more than the disqualified fellows? Is there anything members of executive of the party at these two levels know that is not known to the disqualified aspirants?  Here lies the reason the leadership of APC must ensure that each and every member of APC must abide by the laws of the party, so as not to allow fifth columnists to hijack the party at the level in contention now.

To this writer, the leadership of APC should treat complaint[s] arising from the primary elections, from the disqualified aspirants dispassionately , if they receive any from them; bearing in mind the time frame by INEC for the conduct of the area council elections in FCT. For instance, if it is true that Barrister Mrs. Amanda Pam was wrongly disqualified by the screening committee, I expect the party to admit that error, and compensate her in another way. This to me will bring the much needed cohesion within the party ahead the forthcoming area council elections in the FCT. Apart from the fact that there is no time for new primary election, those agitating for new primary election in AMAC must be reminded that APC is not the only party in FCT area council elections, and so, they cannot impose their will on INEC as far as election in FCT is concerned. A new primary election in AMAC will surely lead to Constitutional crisis of unimaginable proportion in Nigeria. If truly, those agitating for the cancelation of the primary elections that produced Hon. Adamu Candido, are patriotic and loyal members of the party, they should come together and work towards APC victory in the forthcoming area council elections.

 

Information Management Consultant & Researcher

Wrote in from Garki-Abuja