Edo 2020: APC chieftain seeks NEC intervention on mode of primary

Ahead of the governorship primary of the All Progressives Congress fixed for June 22, a former National Auditor of the party, Captain Muhammad Bala Jibrin has sought for the official position of the National Executive Committee of the Party.

The National Working Committee has since adopted the direct primary option for the exercise. The incumbent governor, Godwin Obaseki who is seeking a fresh ticket is believed to have favoured the indirect option.

Nigerian Tribune checks revealed that the party Constitution makes provision for three modes of primary: direct, indirect and consensus arrangement, each subject to ratification of the superior organ of the party, the NEC.

Captain Bala who incidentally was a member of the National Interim Management Committee under the leadership of its pioneer chairman, Chief Bisi Akande noted that only the NEC could take a final decision to resolve the impasse trailing the mode of primary adopted by Comrade Adams Oshiomhole led NWC.

The former NWC member in a statement at the weekend also asked President Muhammadu Buhari not to show cold indifference towards the unfolding crisis in Edo state chapter of the party.

He said: “The APC’s National Executive Committee (NEC) not the National Working Committee (NWC) has the final say on the mode of the primary election. Article 20 (IV) – Procedure for Nomination of Candidates (E) states: “Without prejudice to Article 20(u) and (iii) of this Constitution, the National Working Committee shall subject to the approval of the National Executive Committee make Rules and Regulations for the nomination of candidates through primary elections”.

“This shows that the powers to determine the mode/type of election to be used for the nomination of candidates rests with NEC and not NWC, or at least MUST get the approval of NEC. So, the truth is that the Edo State APC chapter was correct to say that only the NEC has the final say on the matter and not the NWC.

“We would recall that on August 29, 2018, the APC’s NEC delegated this function to NWC and the State Chapters of the Party only for the purpose of Osun and Ekiti primary elections and not in perpetuity. Its resolution on this was: “That the State Executive Committee (SEC) shall in consultation with critical Stakeholders in each state identify and agree among themselves the mode of the primary election to be applied in their state”. Therefore, when we take the constitutional provision, and the decision of NEC together, it is evident that the NWC has no power whatsoever on these matters until they go back to NEC. However, both were flagrantly disregarded and disobeyed by the National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole.”

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The APC chieftain further argued that in the face of absence of an authentic register of the party members, only the NEC could take a position on the legality or otherwise of direct primary.

“We can say that the contemplation of the drafters of the APC Constitution is that direct primary means allowing all card-carrying party members to vote in a primary election. However, there are two issues that unless addressed the whole exercise will be subjected to abuse and manipulation, which is the clear intention of the APC National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole.

“First, not every party member can vote or be voted for. Article 9.3 (i) states that: “Only fully registered and financially up-to-date members of the Party shall have the right to vote and be voted for into any of the elective positions, subject to the provisions made for such elections pursuant to this Constitution or other Laws or Regulations. Consequently, non-financial members shall not enjoy the above rights.” How do you verify, under this situation, who is a financial member or not?

“Given this clear provision, only the NEC can decide on who is a fully registered and financially up-to-date member of the Party that is qualified to vote or be voted for, including the mode of the election of candidates during the primary election. Therefore, it is only proper for the National Working Committee (NWC) and Adams Oshiomhole to subject themselves to the NEC, as the only constitutional body that has the final say on the issue. This means that to ensure checks and balances and roll back the creeping improprieties and lawlessness of the National Chairman, NEC should summon an emergency meeting and thrash out the issues once and for all.

“Second, to conduct a direct primary, the most elementary requirement is an authentic register of party members. Article 9.4 (i) states that: “…the party shall update its membership records every six months and remit updated copies to appropriate Secretariats…”As we speak, the National Secretariat of the APC has no up to date Register of members. The last time the register was updated was in 2017, and since then much water has passed under the bridge with the defection of some APC leaders, like Atiku, Kwankwaso, Saraki, Yakubu Dogara, etc. to PDP, and the decamping of some PDP leaders to APC. As the lawyers say, you can’t build something on nothing.

“While the absence of up-to-date official Register of Members is a clear dereliction of duty on the part of the NWC, the insistence of adopting a direct primary without a Register of members smacks of sinister motive to cause confusion and violence and manipulate the process to serve the whims and caprices of Adams Oshiomhole.”

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