Nigeria not ready for direct primary model – IPAC

The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) on Monday declared its support for President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to withhold assent to the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, saying the idea of direct primary was unrealistic at this stage of Nigeria’s democracy.

The IPAC Chairman, Yabagi Yusuf Sani, who addressed journalists at a media briefing in Abuja, also expressed concern at the disagreement between the Federal Government and National Assembly on the 2022 budget.

On the electoral bill, IPAC chief advised the parliament to immediately expunge the contentious direct primary clause in the bill and forward the amended version to the President for his assent.

He urged the National Assembly not to allow the issue of direct primaries to affect other important provisions in the bill especially the electronic transmission of results.

President Buhari had in December last year withheld assent to the electoral bill over the adoption of the direct primary model and other factors in the document.

Sani said: “On the ongoing stalemate or, standoff between the Legislature and the Executive over the 2021 Electoral Act Amendment Bill, IPAC will want to be counted as among those that are impressed with the National Assembly for the courage, high level of commitment and patriotism exhibited in the passage of a bill that has been widely applauded as groundbreaking and transformative in the annals of the nation’s legislative chambers.

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“For once, we saw our representatives disregarding partisan differences in favour of superior national interest. We saw our lawmakers stood up in a spirited battle in the course of democracy even in the face of intimidation and blackmail.

“We have noted that the only expressed grouse of the President on the basis of which he held back his assent, is the provision in the bill for a mandatory use of Direct Primary election in the selection of flag bearers of all the political parties.

“While many may not concede to the explanations of security challenges with the other reasons given by the President, it will be difficult however, to disagree with him on the reason of complex logistics and huge financial burden that direct primary elections will imply for the Independent National Electoral Commission.

“Many have canvassed the view that no amount of money should be considered too high in the efforts to sanitize the nation’s electoral process and that the Legislature should therefore, invoke its veto powers to overrule the President.

“To us in IPAC, such an action may be tantamount to a wholesale wrecking of the boat. We are of the view that, much as we may cherish its perceived benefits, the country, at this stage of the progress of its democracy, does not appear to be sufficiently ripe and prepared for the direct primary election model in the selection of political party flag bearers.

“Also, against the backdrop of the President’s decisive aversion to this particular provision of the Electoral Bill, the use of veto by the legislature may merely result in a fruitless exercise if, at the end of the day, its implementation is not supported by the required funding by the Executive.

“In summary, if we must call a spade by its name, we in the IPAC are inclined to the opinions that regard the National Assembly’s position on Indirect Primaries as amounting to an attempt to usurp the constitutional rights of parties as to the method of choice of party flag bearers.

“On the 2022 budget, we at IPAC are also worried about the general show of insufficient coordination and alignment of aspirations of the two arms of government which have been under the control of the APC since 2015.

“The latest incident that has awakened our apprehension about the level of interface and synergy between the Presidency and the Parliament was the crises over the 2022 budget which in the perception of keen observers was recently assented to, in protest, by the President.

“At this point that 9th National Assembly and the Presidency of Muhammadu Buhari are practically getting to the threshold of their point of exit, it would have been in the best interest of Nigerians and in the best interest of the APC that all hands must be on deck in steering the ship of the nation.”

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