A governorship aspirant in Kogi State and chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Colonel Ahmed Usman (retd) has called on the leadership of the party not to bow to the antics of some state governors, on the mode of selecting candidates in the coming general elections in the country.
Speaking in a telephone interview with our correspondent, the retired military officer stressed the need for the National Working Committee of the party to stick to the direct primaries, in selecting candidates contesting under the platform of the party in the overall interest of democracy.
He pointed out that those governors resorting to indirect primaries to select candidates know very well that they are not on ground, saying if anything, they are only out to protect their selfish interests.
Usman who was a former military administrator of old Oyo and Ondo States, further opined that direct primaries would strengthen our current democratic experience, as it would allow all members of the party to have a say in the emergence of candidates contesting elections.
He wondered why some governors would be vehemently opposing direct primaries if they know they have nothing to hide, insisting that indirect primaries give room for manipulations, where it would not be difficult for an unpopular candidate to emerge.
While rejecting the indirect primaries adopted by some stakeholders of APC in Kogi State at a meeting at the Government House, Lokoja on Wednesday to select candidates, Colonel Usman stressed that the action was aimed at serving the interest of a very few individuals.
He therefore called on the national leadership of the party to stick to direct primaries in selecting candidates of the party in the state, considering the peculiar nature of the state, so as to carry every stakeholder along in the overall interest of the party.
The APC chieftain maintained that the people of Kogi State deserve a better deal for their unalloyed support to the ruling party, saying if anything, they should be given the freedom to decide their own fate as far as the next dispensation is concerned.
He equally called on the party hierarchy to investigate on the deplorable state of things in the state, alleging that the lives of the people of the state have become miserable since the present government took over in 2016.
