One of themost profound decisions the Adams Oshiomhole-leadership of the
All ProgressivesCongress is bringing to party politics is the adoption of
direct primary as ameans of selecting candidates that will fly the party’s
flag in all electivepositions. The decision is as revolutionary as it is
well timed. It stands toimprove the stock of the APC in the coming 2019
election as well as otherelections in the coming epoch. The decision to
adopt direct primary forselecting candidates stands to imbue greater
participation and confidence amongmembers of the party and give them an
edge over other parties’ candidatesbecause it gives the candidates the
assurance of majority members of the party.If adopted by other parties,
the adoption will give more transparency topolitical participation and
regain the confidence that has been lost over timeas the process of
selecting candidates gets increasingly mired in secrecy.
It is not asif direct primary method is a new method of candidates’
selection. It is notrocket science either and the simplicity of the option
lifts it up and aboveother possible options for candidates’ emergence. It
gives confidence tochoices made because it benefits from the free choice
of all members of theparty in contrast to indirect primary or the
consensus option where a fewleaders of a party decides who is fielded as
candidates for such parties inelections thereby limiting the capacity of
members to choose and put up theirbest candidates for elections.
It is justnatural that the decision to adopt direct primary option is
generating somefurore amongst leaders and members of the party because it
stands to topple anold order that has benefited a select few against the
silent majority that hadlost their rights to choose. The beauty of
democracy obtains in itsparticipatory ambience and the more the
participation, the merrier and lessrancorous the outcome will be. One of
the merits of direct primary is that itrends the decision on who flies a
party’s flag in an election from the hands offew ubiquitous caucus members
and hand such power to the rank and file of theparty. There is nothing to
argue about the fact that a more wholesomeparticipation stands to throw up
better and more popular options than a selectionmade by a few or through
the convoluted process of delegate elections.
It is not a matterof contestation that delegate primaries where a few
delegates that often emergethrough heavily compromised selection processes
are often fraught withmanipulation and other corruptive influences. There
is little to argue thatdelegate primaries oftenreward the highest bidder
and is therefore not the bestleadership selection modal in a democracy. It
is certain that delegateprimaries are an open market that shortchanges the
majority to reward thepowerful few that have mobilized enough cash to
control the process. Ifdemocracy is to be rightly interpreted in its
original form, there is no waythis will suffice as the best democratic
option open for members of a party toexercise their natural rights of
selecting who to put forward in elections. Again,this mode of party
primaries remains one of the central canons of thedysfunctional democracy
Nigeria has been saddled with since independence.
It istherefore laudable that the Oshiomhole leadership of the APC came up
with thisbrilliant idea of taking the party back to the people who own a
party. Thedirect primary option stands to actively revive participation in
all theprocesses of election to the people who remain the soul of
democracy. If all membersof a party are involved in the process of choice
of the candidates of a party,there is no doubt that much of the issues
that burden democratic participationwould be removed and democracy would
be made to assume more practical anddirect meaning with the people. If
members of a party are involved in theprocess of electing the candidates
of a given party, there is greater chancesthatsuch candidates would enjoy
the confidence of a greater number of electoratesof which the members of a
party that elect candidates are a part of. Whatremains is for the party
leadership to ensure fairness and transparency I theconduct of primaries
so that results can reflect the choice of a majority ofthe party members.
While onerecognizes the huge cost implications as well as the unwieldy
process involvedin direct primaries, there is no arguing that the
acceptability of the outcomeas well as the confidence such engenders far
rewards the costs of the process.Direct primaries scale down the
post-electoral rancor and squabbles that havebecome an integral aspect of
our democracy and makes the control of a partyfluid and more
participatory.
Granted thatthere are oppositions to this mode of election but what is
needed is for the Oshiomholeleadership to stand its ground and in a matter
of little time, it will become apositive fad that will grow and enrich our
democracy. Leading the opposition tothe adoption of direct primaries are
the governors who relish the employment ofstate treasuries and
apparatchiks of government to take absolute control ofparties and dictate
what happens therein. The governors have come to believethat absolute
control of parties and deciding the fates of others is anintegral part of
their powers and as such, they play others like pawns in anexpansive
chessboard that assures them tight control of the process. Theselection of
delegates as their fancies approve, has become a whimsical tool intheir
hands such that they see direct primary as an audacious attempt to
latchthe control of parties off their hands. They will do everything to
retain thisskewed status quo to ensure they don’t liberalize control of
political partieswhich direct primaries are bound to ensure. It is
therefore not surprising thatthey have stood as a bulwark against direct
primaries and are doing everythingto scuttle its adoption. If, however
parties belong to the people, every effortmust be made to frustrate their
scheme to nullify the adoption of directprimary in selecting candidates
for elective positions.
So theOshiomhole executive must stand firm and ensure that the direct
primary optionis adopted for the coming APC primaries. It should not be
limited to thepresidential primary alone but should be made to go across
board. Let whoeverwants to serve the people start by going to all members
of a party to ask fortheir approval. Let all those who desire to fly a
party’s flag offer themselvesfor the nod of all members of the party and
not a select few. Let those whowant to contest under the APC seek the
votes of all members of the party. Thatway, democracy would be well
served. There is little doubt that if the processis allowed to endure in
the party, APC will reap tremendous harvest from it inthe coming
elections. This anticipated benefits will make other parties adoptsame
method and what better way to build democracy than through that?
So letdirect primary endure to rightly take the party back to the people
who own it.Let those opposed to it be made to know they are standing
against a currentthey are powerless to stop. The wide acceptance of direct
primary since it wasmuted shows its democratic credentials and there is
little to argue that if theNigerian electoral system is invested with
direct party primaries, some of theimpediments that tug ceaselessly at its
soul will be decisively addressed andour democracy will grow stronger and
more matured from that.
PeterClaverOparah
Ikeja,Lagos.
E-mail: peterclaver2000@yahoo.com