Consensus option throws APC Guber, NASS aspirants into panic

…As party plans direct primaries for presidential polls • Members jittery over modalities for consensus option

GOVERNORSHIP and National Assembly aspirants in the forthcoming primaries in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) are said to be fretting amid the uncertainty surrounding the modalities for the exercise.

Investigations confirmed over the weekend that there is growing concern among contestants for the positions of governors, National Assembly members, and state house of assembly seats.

The notice of elections released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) indicated that party primaries are slated for between April 23 and May 30, while the political parties are to submit their digital membership register ahead of the primaries, and they are to give INEC at least a 21-day notice for each of the primaries.

The ruling party is not challenged for time as regards the digital register, as it had a head start and was ahead of the opposition parties. The party has also concluded its Ward, Local government, and State congresses, while the zonal congresses are slated for March 25.

At the state levels, the consensus option was adopted to select the State Working Committees of the party, except in a few states where the exercise was suspended, largely as a result of recent defections into the party.

It was also learnt that the party leadership had given a nod for a retake of the state congress in Zamfara State, where Governor Dauda Lawal recently defected to the ruling party.

The decision to repeat the state congress in Zamfara State, according to sources, would enable the harmonization of the party structure in a way that would accommodate the governor’s interests.

Investigations further revealed that, except for states whose governors are seeking reelection, aspirants for gubernatorial seats in most APC states are in panic mode. This is because, with the governors as leaders of the party in the states, a governor seeking re-election has the right of first refusal. So, such governors have little or no issues securing the second-term tickets.

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But in states with outgoing governors or those that are not being governed by APC incumbents, sources said that the confusion is heightened by the complete darkness that pervades the process and modalities for the actualisation of the consensus option.

A party leader told the Sunday Tribune that aspirants for the various positions are in a sort of quandary as they are not sure how to proceed with the primaries.

The source said: “Yes, it is true that many of our aspirants are in confusion right now. They don’t know how the consensus option would play out. They said they will determine the Senatorial, House of Representatives, and gubernatorial tickets through a consensus option. Remember that the houses of assembly seats, too, would be determined through consensus. Only the presidential ticket would go through direct primaries.”

As a result of the uncertainty, sources said that the aspirants don’t know how to proceed with campaigns in the intra-party election.

“We are there and waiting, even though we don’t really know how it would pan out. Since it is a consensus, we believe that the party leaders in a collegiate system would draw up the list and come up with the most preferred candidate whom they would recommend for adoption by the congress,” another source said.

However, for the presidential primaries, the source said that though party leaders are talking about direct primaries, the process would be largely ruled by affirmation, since most of the states and the zones have already adopted the president as the sole candidate for the ticket.