20 APC Guber Aspirants Warn Party Against Indirect Primaries

20 governorship aspirants on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC in Kogi State on Monday flatly rejected the indirect primaries adopted for determining the party’s candidate for the election warning it was laying the grounds for the party to lose the state.

The aspirants including Yusuf Haruna, who served as Aide De Camp, ADC to Comrade Adams Oshiomhole as governor of Edo State observed that the delegates being proposed for an indirect election were all coordinators for Governor Yahaya Bello.

The NWC had last weekend announced the adoption of the indirect primary method as the method to be used in selecting the party’s candidate.

Signatories to the petition lodged at the secretariat included Comrade Gowon Egbunu, Prince Sanni Shuaibu, Dr. Tim Diche, Alhaji Yusuf Haruna. Admiral Usman Jibrin, Alhaji Mohammed Audu, Alhaji Mohammed Ali, Pharm. Aliyu Zakari-Jiya and Alhaji Sani Lulu Abdullahi.

Others who signed the petition were Alhaji Jibrin Haruna Mohammed, AIhaji Yakubu Mohammed, Sheik Ibrahim Jibril, Chief Momoh Y. Obaro, Prince Sani H. Shuaibu, Prince Mustapha Mona Audu, Alh. Ahmed Ibrahim Aruwa, Gen. Akpa Patrick, Engr. Sunday Edibo, Khalid Adams and Yusuf Ali.

Comrade Muhammed Ali, who read out the petition on Monday said:

“We regret to observe that such decision was taken without adequate consultations with critical stakeholders of the Party in the state especially the governorship aspirants on the platform of the Party and other contending groups in the polarized structure of the Party in the state.

“The decision to adopt an Indirect Primary by the National Working Committee is fraught with severe implications. First, contrary to the information given to the National Working Committee, there are suits pending in an Abuja Court seeking to determine the authentic executive of the Party in the State (see attached).

“As a matter of fact, at the last hearing, the suit was adjourned till October 2, 2019. Second, arising from the pendency of the various suits to determine the legitimate Party executive council in the State, the use of any factional delegate list may amount to an exercise in futility. And lastly, we may have unconsciously set booby-traps for our Party and the stage for the replay of the unfortunate Zamfara scenario.

“We observe that as a Party committed to the enthronement of popular democracy, the resort to an Indirect Primary in the Kogi State chapter of the APC amounts to a muzzling of the wishes of the generality of our Party members, a victory for merchandised political culture and a deference to Governor Yahaya Bella’s wish to be the judge in his own case.

“It is on record that Bello’s factional Party executive council members, which he is angling as delegates for the Indirect Primary are peopled by his political appointees and loyalists who are on the payroll of the State Government.

It is also instructive to note that nearly all the 21 local governments Party Chairmen are Governor Yahaya Bello’s coordinators. To subject other aspirants to this hostile political mechanism in the name of Indirect Primary amounts to a clear case of political ambush, gross act of injustice and a trust betrayed.

“Whereas, Governorship election for Kogi and Bayelsa States are scheduled for November 16th, 2019, we note with sadness the selective approach of the National working Committee in treating the primary election in Kogi State in isolation of that of Bayelsa state.”

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