Ayodele Arise, chieftain of the All Progressives Congress and aspirant for the ticket of the Ekiti North Senatorial District, has described the party’s primary election as a sham.

He then urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to, as a matter of urgency, intervene in the crisis trailing the outcome of the exercise.

In a statement at the weekend, Arise said state governors remained a major challenge for a smooth conduct of the recent APC primaries. 

Recall that the APC Committee, which supervised the process, had declared the sitting lawmaker representing Ekiti North, Senator Cyril Fasuyi, as the winner. 

However, Arise and other contenders for the ticket, including Dipo Bamisaye and Dare Owolabi, had since dismissed the outcome as fraudulent and manipulated.

Senator Arise, who represented the senatorial district between 2007 and 2011, said the primary was a sham and the party is paying lip service to the crisis the election had generated. 

“When we talk about internal democracy, it is still a very big challenge. It’s one thing for us to have a Constitution; it’s another thing for people to try to circumvent it or the guidelines for any election.

“That was demonstrated in no small measure when I tried to come back through the primary because I knew what was in the pipeline, so I went into it to prove a point.

“It will be a shame if some of us passed through this country and we don’t have the voice to correct the anomalies and let people know that if we want to practice democracy, let us practice it. If we don’t want it, it’s a different kettle of fish.

“The experience I had during the primary, I really don’t want to overbeat that because I believe the chairman of the party has spoken with Mr. President, and I think they are looking at all the challenges, and I am sure those of us who worked and won our elections will be given our mandate in due course.”

“As we discover problems, people respond to them, and I believe, more than anybody else, that our President has been very proactive in terms of fixing some of these challenges, working on them, and ensuring that corrections are made before it’s too late,” he stated. 

He added that “the issue of the governors is still a major problem in terms of trying to get to the Senate.

“Even when you aren’t contesting against them, if you aren’t their favored candidate, the chances of your making it are a little bit very challenging.” 

DAILY POST reports that the APC primaries that were held last month were marred with controversies. 

The National Chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party, PRP, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has revealed how the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, can have free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria.

In a statement on Sunday, Baba-Ahmed, said that INEC must be strengthened and shielded from undue political interference to enhance public confidence in the electoral process.

The former Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on political matters noted that called for a review of the process for appointing the INEC Chairman, National Commissioners and Resident Electoral Commissioners, RECs.

According to him, the current system gives the executive excessive influence over the electoral body.

“The moment you hand over an electoral body to a partisan administration that wants to retain power, you create serious questions about its neutrality,” he said.

He also called for greater financial autonomy for the commission, insisting that INEC should be allowed to present and defend its budget directly before the National Assembly without executive interference.

The former Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on political affairs urged authorities to impose stiffer penalties on politicians and other individuals involved in electoral fraud and violence.

Baba-Ahmed pointed out that the persistence of electoral offences is largely due to the lack of accountability for offenders.

“Politicians who compromise the electoral process must face the consequences of their actions. The culture of impunity must end,” he added.