Crisis looms as INEC list tears APC, PDP apart

…SDP, ADC, other parties set to reap from candidates’ list fallout
…Aggrieved aspirants seek legal redress to scale hurdles for 2019
Consequent upon the submission of lists of presidential and National Assembly candidates by 86 out of the 91 political parties to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday night, fresh crisis is imminent in major political parties, especially the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The Daily Times gathered that leadership of both the APC and PDP kept their candidates lists undisclosed to the dying minutes because of unresolved issues that surrounded primary elections conducted in some states.

Aggrieved aspirants, it was learnt, are poised for action which include outright dumping of their parties in search of parties that are ready to offer them tickets while a few of them are considering legal option against their parties.

Mostly affected is the APC whose national secretariat has been bombarded with petitions from aspirants who believe they were shortchanged in the primaries.

The resignation of Senator Shehu Sani from the APC at the weekend and the dumping of the party by Senator Magnus Abe was the peak of the APC crisis in Kaduna and Rivets states.

Senator Sani, representing Kaduna Central senatorial district said he joined the party for the believe that the party will constitute a veritable platform for the realisation of those democratic ideals which he held dear, but now could not be found in the party.

Senator Sani, a fortnight ago, was reported to have emerged as the Kaduna Central Senatorial candidate after beating four other contestants but surprisingly, his name was not submitted to the election umpire – the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) as the party’s flag bearer of the Senatorial District.

In the same vein, Senator Godwin Abe, a gubernatorial aspirant of the party in Rivers State, has thrown in the towel for not being given the mandate to fly the party’s governorship flag in the 2019 general election

Abe, the governorship hopeful, lost in the primary election which he described as impunity of the highest order.

The pain of these aggrieved aspirants was well captured by the wife of the President, Mrs. Aisha Buhari, whose brother lost APC governorship ticket in Borno State.

Mrs. Buhari was quoted as tweeting in her official handle thus, “It is disheartening to note that some aspirants used their hard earned money to purchase nomination forms, got screened, cleared and campaigned vigorously yet found their names omitted on Election Day, these forms were bought at exorbitant prices.

“Many others contested and yet had their results delayed, knowing that automatic tickets have been given to other people”.

She expressed dismay that the “All Progressives Congress being a party whose cardinal principle is change and headed by a comrade/activist whose main concern is for the common man, yet, such impunity could take place under his watch”.

As at press time, some APC state governors aggrieved by the rejection of their preferred aspirants by the party’s national executive are allegedly plotting the removal of its national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole.

The opposition PDP is not spared in the crisis as the party has unresolved leadership issues in some very few states but little crisis from its primaries. Ogun State PDP is a case for concern as Senator Buruji Kasamu held parallel executive and consequently parallel list of candidates.

The party’s national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, on Friday, warned that any member parading other Iist outside of the one submitted by the party to INEC risks prosecution.

The Daily Times also gathered that in coming weeks, both chambers of the National Assembly may witness defection of members from their parties to new ones.

Waiting in the the wing to reap from the fallout of these crises are third force parties such as the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the Labour Party and others which may serve as veritable options for federal lawmakers who lost tickets in their parties.

Though parties have submitted lists of candidates, these aggrieved politicians are banking on the window created by INEC for parties to substitute names of candidates.

The smaller parties stand to benefit because there will be windfall of readily available fund for pre- election and post- election activities

This apart, candidates for states House of Assembly positions on the platforms of these less stronger parties may leverage on the political might and influence of the defectors to win elections.

A credible source also confided in The Daily Times last night that two parties have already offered Senator Abe their platforms to seek his gubernatorial ambition while Senator Sani was still indecisive of his next move; either to join the PDP or to just complete his term in the Senate before disclosing his political move tomorrow.

In Oyo State, former Governor Adebayo Alao- Akala, who lost out in APC governorship primary, is considering the Labour Party on which platform he contested in 2015 as best option and that the party is willing to substitute his name as its candidate.

A national executive member of one of these parties who spoke to The Daily Times on condition of anonymity, said: “We are currently holding talks with a number of Senators and Reps members on terms on running on our platform and we are optimistic that we shall have a list of some of them before the expiration of time given by INEC to substitute names of candidates”.

He went further to say that “relying on a verdict by the Supreme Court of Nigeria that it is parties that have the right to provide names of candidates to contest all elective positions on their platforms, we shall duly submit names of politicians that can add value to our electoral prospect”.

He added that there are internal mechanism to assuage those whose names may be substituted while he did not rule out juicy bargain from those coming to pick up the tickets.

The third option being considered by some of the affected aspirants is legal option as they are poised to drag their parties to court over either the process of the primaries or over alleged infractions in the declaration of results.

In view of this development, the APC may further be involved in legal skirmishes as many aspirants are set to question the adoption of direct primary option in some states.

Some of the aspirants will be seeking redress over what they described as robbery of mandates given to them even at the primaries by the the various election panels who are allegedly doing the biddings of the APC leadership.

Statistics had it that 42 senators out of the 109 members of the 8th National Assembly are not coming back to the Senate after May 2019.

While 19 senators voluntarily withdrew from contesting for return tickets or contested for governorship tickets of their parties, 23 contested for return tickets but failed.

Those that were forced to withdraw from recontesting due to political intrigues in their parties include Senators Gbenga Ashafa (APC, Lagos East), Lanre Tejuoso (APC, Ogun Central), Fatima Raji Rasaki (APC, Ekiti Central), Sola Adeyeye (APC, Osun Central), Babajide Omoworare (APC, Osun East), Rilwan Akanbi (APC, Oyo South),

Gilbert Nnaji (PDP, Enugu East), Emmanuel Paulker (PDP, Bayelsa Central), Ben Murray Bruce (PDP, Bayelsa West), Foster Ogola (PDP, Bayelsa South) and Ahmed Abubakar (APC, Adamawa South).

Others are Rafiu Ibrahim (PDP, Kwara South), Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (Senate spokesman and APC member, Niger North), David Umoru (APC, Niger East) and Joshua Dariye (APC, Plateau Central).

Those who either voluntarily withdrew from return contest or went for governorship tickets are Senators Ahmed Sani Yerima (APC, Zamfara East), Bukkar Abba Ibrahim (APC, Yobe East), Abu Ibrahim (APC, Katsina South), Abubakar Kyari (APC, Borno North) and Kaka Gabbai (APC, Borno Central)

Others are Jonah Jang (PDP, Plateau North), David Mark (PDP, Benue South), Philip Gyunka (PDP, Nasarawa North), Sam Anyanwu (PDP, Imo East), Abdulaziz Murtala Nyako (APC, Adamawa Central) and Usman Nafada (PDP, Gombe North).

Also in the category are Kabiru Marafa (APC, Zamfara Central), Shaaba Lafiagi (PDP, Kwara North), Ademola Adeleke (PDP, Osun West), Sonny Ugborji (APC, Ebonyi Central), John Enoh (APC, Cross River Central), Gbolahan Dada (APC, Ogun West ), Hope Uzodinma (APC, Imo West) and Shehu Sani (APC, Kaduna Central).

Similarly, in the House of Representatives, some of the lawmakers may not make it to the 2019 general election as they have lost their parties tickets.

Prominent among these members is Hon Nnenna Elendu-Ukeje (Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State), who lost her nomination in the PDP to Chima Anyanso.

Others are Hon Chukwuemeka Ujam (PDP, Enugu). In Delta State, Daniel Rayenieju, Lovette Idisi, Onyemaechi Mrakpor and Ahwinahwi Solomon crashed at the primaries while Hon Dickson Dickson Dyegh (APC, Benue) and Emmnuel Udende (PDP, Benue) also lost their nominations.

Also affected are Hon Buka Goni, (APC,Yobe) and Hon. Sani Zoro (APC, Jigawa State).

Similarly, the fate of APC members from Ogun and Zamfara is currently hanging in the balance as a result of the controversy surrounding the ruling party’s nomination exercises in the two states.

Top on the list of Senators being lobbied by other parties to contest governorship election in their platforms include Hope Uzodinma in Imo State, Kabiru Marafa, Zamfara State, Suleiman Hunkuyi, Kaduna State, John Enoh, Cross River State, Sam Anyanwu (Imo State), Abdulaziz Murtala Nyako, Adamawa State and Usman Nafada, Gombe State.

With these offers, reconfiguration of the leadership of both chambers of the National Assembly no doubt is in view as the ruling APC may lose its grip of control while PDP may gain a few more members just as the SDP, ADC and a few other new parties may have members before the expiration of the 8th National Assembly.

Meanwhile, aftermath of APC primaries showed that Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun, former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, Senator Magnus Abe and President Muhammadu Buhari wife’s brother, Mahmoud Halilu, are among the big losers as the APC Appeals Panel submitted its report at the weekend.

Also, Niger Delta Affairs Minister, Usani Uguru Usani, failed to upturn the outcome of the Cross River State governorship primary.

Mrs. Buhari’s brother, Mahmoud Halilu (aka Modi) and President of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Bala Bobboi Kaigama, also lost the opportunity to have their candidacies returned as party standard bearers.

The two petitions against the governorship primaries in Rivers by Senator Abe and Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs were not upheld. The petition from Delta State by Prof. Pat Utomi was also dismissed and tagged “overtaken by event”.

From Borno, there were four petitions against the conduct of the governorship primary. The committee recommended that a consensus option be explored to be supervised by the National Chairman of the APC in consultation with the President.

It was also gathered that majority of the petitions against the conduct of the Senate and House of Representatives primaries were not upheld for various reasons, ranging from lack of merit and lack of proof to lack of time for fresh primaries. No reasons were adduced for not upholding some others.

Similarly, some petitions were upheld and some of the petitioners declared as candidates of the party either because they actually won the primaries and were substituted or for other reasons ranging from lack of clearance and others that were not adduced by the committee.

A summary of the report indicated that all petitions on the Senate and House of Representatives primaries were rejected by the panel.

Also rejected were those from Bayelsa, Rivers and Cross River states.

In Delta State, eight petitions were upheld because the petitioners won the primaries, but their names were substituted. Seven petitions were rejected.

The three petitions against the conduct of the governorship primary in Akwa Ibom State was rejected alongside eight House of Representatives seat. Five were upheld.

From Kaduna State, six petitions were treated on the senatorial primaries while five of them were rejected. But controversy is trailing the outcome of Senator Shehu Sani’s matter, following his resignation from the APC on Saturday

Two petitions each were received against the governorship primaries in Sokoto and Jigawa states. They were rejected. Three House of Representatives and three senatorial petitions were rejected from the two states.

Petitions from Kebbi and Katsina states were also rejected. The two against the conduct of the governorship primary were referred to the National Working Committee for further action.