Presidential nomination fees by two leading political parties, uproar that followed and need for well thought-out electoral decisions leading up to 2023
News Commentary Written by Titilope Adegolu
Tons of reactions have followed the announcement of the fees for the nomination forms of the two largest political parties in the country, the APC and the PDP.
Reeling from the PDP’s announcement that the nomination form for presidency costs 40Million Naira, Nigerians were shocked with the news of a humongous 100Million Naira form fee by the ruling APC.
The backlash that followed was deafening, so deafening that the party concerned must not have heard the continuos criticism, as a reversal looks unlikely.
The startling fees levied upon aspirants must have inspired several calls for pressure to be mounted on the affected parties.
What are the implications of this announcement on the voting process, the expectations of the electorate, and current realities?
Up from 2015, when APC pegged 45 Million Naira as Presidential nomination fee, and the PDP’s was pegged at 12 Million Naira for the same position, the costs for same forms have shot up by over 110 percent, in an economy that has been pummeled by weak financial policies, food inflation and fuel price hikes.
A school of thought is also of the opinion that the prices are nothing but commercialisation of democracy or better still, democracy of the highest bidder.
There are also those who believe that these political parties are gradually making power the exclusive preserve of the rich, even if it is the filthy rich.
In a swift reaction, the human rights writers association of Nigeria has asked for the probe of any individual capable of purchasing the said forms.
While political parties have the power to decide their internal affairs, it does not take a seer to to know when a decision is in bad taste.
The average man on the street would now need a sound persuasion on why they should not get a reward for participating in a voting process that is so highly priced.
2023 will no doubt be an important year in the history of the country, and a compass for political and economic direction in at least, the following 4 years.
It is important that political actors take into cognisance every action leading to such an important process, as well as the cascading effects each decision will have on ordinary citizens.
It is also high time that Nigerians started looking in the direction of other political parties and be ready to punish the APC and the PDP in subsequent elections to remind them that power actually resides with the people and not with political parties.