APC will field consensus candidates in Zamfara — Oshiomhole replies INEC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) will field consensus candidates for the 2019 elections in Zamfara state.

Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the party, said this in response to the directive of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that the party should not field candidates for the 2019 elections.

INEC said it barred the party from fielding governorship, state assembly, and national assembly candidates in the coming elections because it did not meet the October 7 deadline for conduct of primaries.

But in a letter seen by TheCable, Oshiomhole challenged the action of the commission, saying it is incorrect to state that primaries did not hold in Zamfara.

While he admitted that there was violence when the national working committee (NWC) of the party went to Zamfara for the exercise, Oshiomhole said the primaries took place but there was no voting.

“The contents of your said letter seem to conclude that no primaries were conducted by the APC in Zamfara State. We wish to state emphatically that nothing can be farther from the actual situation in Zamfara State,” he wrote.

“Kindly find a comprehensive report from the Zamfara Electoral Committee of the All Progressives Congress and signed by all the members on the conduct of primary elections for the Zamfara State held between 6th & 7th October, 2018. The summary of the report, as you will find, is that following the high level of friction, disagreements and threatened violence by various political camps before the primaries, all the aspirants met at City King Hotel, Gusau, to find a truce.

“After hours of intense horse-trading, a consensus was reached within the spirit and context of the Electoral Act and the constitution of our party on the basis of which a list was produced which was confirmed/affirmed by all delegates present. This was done in strict compliance with section 87 (6) of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as Amended).

“Therefore, the claim in your letter under reference that ‘no primaries were conducted by your party in the state, notwithstanding that our officials were fully mobilized and deployed’ could only be referring to their observation that actual voting did not take place, which is not the only mode prescribed for producing candidates in the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended). We, therefore, affirm that indeed primaries took place in Zamfara State.”

Accusing INEC of not being fair to the APC, Oshiomhole said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kano state did not conduct primary yet the commission did not take any action against the opposition party.

He said his party had up till October 18 to present its candidates for the election, adding that APC would respond to further inquiries from INEC after it had presented its flagbearers for 2019.

“Please also refer to the INEC’s Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2019 General Elections released by the Commission on the 9’” January, 2018. By that timetable all political parties are expected to submit a list of their candidates on or before 18th of October, 2018, after exhausting all internal procedures for Appeals arising out of the congresses,” he said.

“As a party, we are in the process of exhausting those internal procedures before forwarding the names of our candidates to you. We are perplexed that you did not wait for us to submit the names of our candidates in Zamfara State (considering that the time within which such submission should take place has not elapsed) before raising your observation in your letter under reference.

“This is more so when we received no correspondence from the Commission at least to inquire from our party the true state of affairs in Zamfara State, in the spirit of fair hearing, before making haste to write your letter. We, however note that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) did not also hold primaries in Kano, but no such similar letter was written to the PDP in relation to Kano State.

“It is our contention, in the circumstance, that your letter is not only preemptive, but your position seem to negate the spirit of any fair hearing and is devoid of legal basis.

“BE INFORMED, that in the spirit of due compliance with the law, we affirm that we shall indeed be presenting candidates for Governorship, National Assembly and State Assembly Elections in Zamfara State for the 2019 General elections before the deadline for submission of such names which has been fixed by your Commission on the 18th of October, 2018.

“If you raise further observations AFTER you receive our list of candidates, we shall be glad to clarify them.”