The All Progressives Congress has said it will conduct a primary election in which at least 300,000 of its members will determine its presidential candidate for the 2015 election.
The party said it would not adopt the delegate system in the primary election, but the modified direct system, which would involve such number of people that would be difficult for aspirants to buy over.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary made this known at the end of the party’s first National Executive Council meeting in Abuja.
He said the party’s primaries for all positions would commence in October.
The party also condemned the various political rallies already being held for President Goodluck Jonathan’s second term bid.
He said unlike the PDP which would automatically adopt President Jonathan as its candidate, the APC would hold a credible primary election for all positions.
It said the Peoples Democratic Party and President Jonathan are by the rallies violating electoral guidelines with impunity.
It also said for the forthcoming October 11 governorship bye-election in Adamawa State to be free and fair, the Federal Government must lift the curfew imposed on the state during the period of the election.
Mohammed explained that the party’s call for the lifting of the curfew in the state did not imply calling for the termination of emergency rule in the state.
While it maintained that the party would win the forthcoming October 11 governorship bye-election in Adamawa State, it said the recent defection of the pioneer chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to the PDP would not have any adverse effect on its fortune in the state.
Ribadu had contested the 2011 presidential election on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria, which was one of the opposition party that merged to become the APC.
Already, former Head of State, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and others are said to be making underground moves to emerge if possible as the party’s consensus candidate.
Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State and the Speaker of House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, though still a member of the PDP have been tipped as possible candidates of the APC in the 2015 presidential election.
Buhari, Atiku, Kwankwaso, Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State, Rochas Okorocha of Imo, Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State were among those who attended the NEC meeting.
Other South-West governors of Lagos, Ogun, Ekiti, Oyo, Governor Adams Oshiomhole, a national leader of the party, Bola Tinubu were absent.
Away from its tradition of adopting consensus candidates for various elections, Mohammed said on Thursday, that the party would conduct primaries to ensure that candidates who would emerge on its platform.
Mohammed said, “It is going to be direct. We would want to see the greatest participation of our members.
“We obviously, definitely, will not adopt a delegate convention because delegate election has probably about 6,000 delegates. What we are thinking about will involve almost 300,000 people. [eap_ad_1] “For presidential election what we are thinking about, we will make sure that elected officials from the ward level, local government level, state level, national EXCO, the caucus,members of Board of Trustees of the party, all elected officials on the platform of the party, council chairmen, councillors, House of Assembly members, National Assembly members are all eligible to participate in the choice of who is going to be the flag bearer of the party at whatever level.
“Of course when it comes to the presidential election, we will be talking about over 300,000 people because there are about 8,000 wards all over Niigeria today, and in each ward we have about 25 officers. If you multiply 25 by 8,000 you already have about 200,000 people.
“If you now move to Local government level, you have about 774 local governments in the country and in each again, we have about 20 officers; 20 multiply by 774, we have about 20,000. This way, we believe we are going to make sure whoever emerges as the candidate of the party has support of the party at the most grassroot level which is the ward level.
“You are including executives in 8,000 wards all over Nigeria. That alone will give you about 200,000 as opposed to 6,000 or 7,000 delegates that would have participated.
