Aspirants drag APC over nomination fee refund as party kicks out Umahi opponent

As the coast narrows for the 2023 ballot, another crisis is brewing in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party over the party's inability to reimburse nomination fees to aspirants who withdrew during of his last national party convention.< /p>

Candidates who jostled for various seats at the March 26 national party convention were convinced to stand down for other candidates based on the consensual arrangement brokered by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The party had set the cost of the form for its presidential seat at 20 million naira, while candidates for the vice-presidential seats had to get their form with 10 million naira each. Other contenders for the remaining party seats paid N5 million each as expressions of interest and nomination fees.

The party is believed to have raised over 700 million naira from around 170 candidates during the financial year, just as the party raised over 3 billion naira from candidates for party tickets for participate in the 2023 general elections.

But four months after the resumption of the National Working Committee (NWC) led by Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the party has yet to deliver on its promises to return funds to aggrieved aspirants.

Meanwhile, the APC's Ebonyi Southern Section expelled Ann Agom-Eze from the party for allegedly rebellious and unruly behavior. Agom-Eze was Governor Dave Umahi's main challenger for the APC's Ebonyi South senatorial ticket.

On July 22, a Federal High Court in Abakaliki dismissed a lawsuit brought by Umahi, asking the court to recognize him as the APC candidate for the senatorial constituency. However, the court ordered that a new primary be held within 14 days. APC held a new primary on July 31 in which Umahi was declared the winner.

In a statement yesterday, Stanley Okoro-Emegha, the state APC chairman, said Agom-Eze “endangered his membership in a rebellious manner by violating the APC Constitution, which prohibits any act of dishonesty likely to denigrate the party or its members".

He added that Agom-Eze was initially evicted by APC ward cadres in her Umudomi ward in Onicha LGA of the state.

“The President of APC, Ebonyi South Zone, Mr. Ernest Nwazi, by a motion, expelled Agom-Eze from the party for rebellious and undisciplined behavior,” he said.

“The president also said that she had fundamentally violated certain sections of the party constitution. Agom-Eze had recklessly disparaged herself by swallowing her words in an effort to satisfy her payers.

"Since her eviction began from her neighborhood, I cannot interfere in the decision as politics is a grassroots engagement. We are well educated in her antics as she is funded by the opposition party. Okoro- Emegha added that the APC would "convincingly" get all the votes for its candidates in the 2023 elections.

This is how the outgoing Resident Election Commissioner (REC) in charge of Akwa Ibom State, Mike Igini, said that APC did not conduct a gubernatorial primary in the state in the deadline set by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).< /p>

Igini, whose term as REC expires today, also said that APC did not hold primaries for the Mbo State constituency. This was contained in a statement he issued yesterday in Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom State.

The outgoing REC, said the clarification had become necessary following a series of calls and inquiries from members who participated in the party's primaries to find out how things stand.

Rumor had it that some well-connected party stalwarts in the state were working to compromise the APC's national seat and were allegedly planning to field a slate of candidates that did not come from the office-controlled primaries. State of INEC.

Igini, in the press release, said that not all political parties fielded candidates for all positions. "I am compelled to reaffirm for the records the status of the monitored party primaries in Akwa Ibom as my five-year term comes to an end.

“Generally, in Akwa Ibom, all political parties that have held party primaries in accordance with the provisions of Article 84 (i) of the Electoral Law of 2022 have been controlled by the various teams formed for the exercise by the state office and reports of the result approved and forwarded to the headquarters of the Commission in Abuja.

“However, not all political parties have held primaries for all elected terms. The Commission has set the timing for all party primaries between April 4 and June 3, 2022. did not conduct its gubernatorial party primary in Akwa Ibom, which was scheduled to be held on May 26, at Sheergrace Arena, 8/10, Nsikak Avenue Eduok, Uyo."

IN ADDITION to not reimbursing those who voluntarily resigned at the convention, APC is indebted to the members who led the party conventions held from the constituency level to the national convention for the emergence of...