As Nigerians continue to react to the pegging of nomination fees at N100m, N50m, N20m, for Presidential, Governorship and Senatorial aspirants, respectively, by the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said APC is “ inflicting maximum pains on its members”
The National Chairman of the PDP, Iyorchia Ayu on Thursday, in a statement, said the high fees, “casts the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the image of rogues and hypocrites”
The party had on Wednesday released the cost of nomination forms at N100m, N50m, N20m, for Presidential, Governorship and Senatorial aspirants, amongst others.
The statement signed by Simon Imobo-Tswam, Special Adviser on Communication and Strategy, to the National Chairman, described the party as “a fragmented alliance put together to capture power and inflict maximum pain on Nigerians, including their own members”
The party recalled how in 2014, President Muhammadu Buhari, told Nigerians that he had to borrow N27m to buy his nomination form.
According to the PDP, “ The same man, as leader of his party, has now sanctioned the sale of the same forms at N100m, I am told that’s an increase of at 370 %”
“But in 2014, the PDP was in power and the economy was still booming”
“The incompetent APC presidency has now run the economy aground, making Nigeria the “Poverty Capital of the World.” How then can impoverished APC aspirants buy nominations at such prohibitively high costs? And yet, only recently he preached “Equal Opportunity” to them.
The party observed that millions of Nigerians have been disenfranchised by the action of the APC.
Read also: 2023: Again, PDP extends sales of nomination forms
“By this latest insensitive action, the APC has disenfranchised thousands of her youths, and dashed the hopes of millions of Nigerian youths who applauded President Buhari when he signed the Not Too Young To Run Bill into law in 2018. It is most insensitive, and mind-boggling. In fact, all those buying the N100m and N50m nomination forms should be investigated for fraud.
Unlike the APC, the PDP had earlier pegged its fees for both the expression of interest and nomination forms, at N40 million for President, N21 million for Governorship aspirants,
Those aspiring for Senate, are to pay N3.5 million, N2.5 million for those aspiring for the House of Representatives, while state House of Assembly aspirants will pay N600,000
The party’s NEC also approved a 50 per cent reduction in nomination fees for youths aged 25 to 30 years for various elective positions
“We, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), are different. We are a mass movement for the Nigerian people. This is why our nomination fees are soft and democratic”
“When you compare us with the APC, the difference is clear. This is why we must return to power to save Nigerians from this insensitive government”he said
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