The Nigerian Consolidation Ambassadors Network (NCAN), a group which bought the N45 million All Progressives Congress (APC) Nomination and Expression of Interest forms for President Muhammadu Buhari, has asked anyone who does not like what it did to go to court.
There have been controversies over the legality and the morality of the president accepting the gift from the group, given his anti-corruption stance and the provisions of the laws.
Speaking on Kaakaki, an African Independent Television (AIT) programme, on Friday, the NCAN National Coordinator, Sunnusi Musa, said as private citizens, he and other members of the group were free to spend their money the way they wanted.
“As a private citizen, I do not owe anyone any explanation on how I make and spend my money. Anyone who is not pleased with what we did can go to court,” he said while responding to questions on the propriety of the action of the group.
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He insisted that the N45million was sourced by the group from its members whom he said numbered over 2,000 and were scattered across the country.
Musa added that “somebody’ he never knew before also gave the group N5million when he got to know of the mission to buy the forms for President Buhari.
He also disagreed with claims that what the group did was against the provisions of the Electoral Act, stressing that “Buhari is not yet a candidate who is precluded from being funded by individuals and entities” with amounts above N1million.
In the same vein, the APC leadership, on Friday, said the decision of NCAN to purchase the forms for the president at the cost of N45million was in order.
The party said it was shocked that no eyebrow was raised from any quarters when supporters of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar purchased for him the Nomination and Expression of Interest forms of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2019 presidential election.
The party made its position known in a statement issued by its acting National Publicity Secretary, Mr Yekini Nabena, in response to a newspaper report on the purchase of forms for President Buhari’s reelection bid.
The newspaper had cited Section 91 (9) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) which reads: “No individual or other entity shall donate more than one million naira (N1, 000, 000.00) to any candidate.”
But the party’s spokesperson said: “It is pertinent to advise that the newspaper, as a reputable news outlet, ought to restrain itself from such sensational reportage and avail its team with good legal advice before rushing to conclusion, based on erroneous legal grounds.
“Aside the fact that there is a world of difference between an “aspirant” and a “candidate” in the eyes of the law, there has been no contravention of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).
“The Nigeria Consolidation Ambassadors Network (NCAN) was responsible for the purchase of the presidential form for President Muhammadu Buhari and has indicated that it acted as a collection medium to aggregate micro-contributions from thousands of Nigerians keen to ensure his re-election.
«While we restate that as a political party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) mandates observance and compliance with the dictates of the law, we also acknowledge that this singular act by thousands of Nigerians severely jolted the ranks of opposition politicians and their paid agents in the media, hence their desperate attempt to tar such a noble gesture with the brush of illegality.
“This is especially the case considering the loud silence of the newspaper when former Vice President Atiku Abubakar enjoyed the same gesture from his supporters to purchase the PDP Nomination and Expression of Interest forms for the 2019 presidential election.”
Recalled that President Buhari had, last week, reportedly said he cannot afford the sum of N55million as initially mandated by APC for the payment of the Nomination and Expression of Interest forms for the presidential ticket of the party ahead the 2019 elections.
Following the downward review of the amount to N45million by the APC National Working Committee (NWC), the Nigerian Consolidation Ambassadors Network, had, on Wednesday, bought the forms on behalf of the president
Justifying the action of the group, its national coordinator, Sunnusi Musa, had said the group embarked on the project, based on it conviction that the president had laid a foundation for a better Nigeria, adding that there was need to consolidate on the gains so far made by the present administration in the country.
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