APC, PDP presidential form is mockery of democracy, says Third Force

Third Force Leaders under the umbrella of the National Consultative Front (NCFront), yesterday, condemned what they termed excessive and outrageous monetisation of electioneering process by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

In a statement, signed by the secretary of the group, Dr. Tanko Yinusa, they described the costs of expression of interest and nomination forms of the APC and PDP as discriminatory and corruptive.

The statement noted that the imposition of N100 million and N40 million on presidential aspirants by APC and PDP respectively speaks eloquently to the retrogressive politics the Nigerian ruling class has been systematically perpetuating by monetising the political mandate of Nigerians.

It reads in part: “It is not strange to us that both the APC and the PDP now place more premium on money rather than other critical values like character and competence for aspirants that seek political offices.

“The irrationality of the imposition of prohibitive fees on aspirants can be seen in the light of worsening official corruption at all levels of governance. It amounts to a mockery of our democracy for any political party to enforce regulations that place the political space under the exclusive control of moneybags and highest bidders, especially in the hands of incumbent political office holders who will be left with no option but engage in unwholesome mandate buying, only to device a crooked means of recouping their political investments.

“The imposition of exorbitant fees on those seeking public offices cannot be defended at a time like this, when national revenue is dwindling, prompting reliance on local and foreign loans to implement budget.”