PRESS STATEMENT

Your Excellency Mr. President,

Your Excellency the National Chairman APC,

We write with a deep sense of urgency and concern over unfolding developments within the All Progressives Congress in Nasarawa State which now threaten the integrity, credibility and peaceful conduct of the forthcoming Direct Primaries in the State.

The recent circular reportedly issued by the Nasarawa State APC Chairman, Dr. Aliyu Bello, directing party members to disregard membership registration slips obtained from the Party’s National Headquarters in Abuja and insisting that only slips signed and stamped by the State Party Office would be recognized for purposes of participation in the forthcoming Direct Primaries, has generated widespread outrage, suspicion and tension among party faithful across the State.

This directive is not only arbitrary and provocative, but also strongly suggestive of a carefully orchestrated scheme to manipulate the primary election process and disenfranchise thousands of duly registered APC members in Nasarawa State.

For months now, there have been widespread speculations and growing fears among stakeholders that certain individuals within the State Party leadership, acting in concert with vested political interests, have been clandestinely plotting to rig the APC governorship primaries in favour of their preferred aspirant, Ahmed Aliyu Wadada. The controversial circular issued by Dr. Aliyu Bello has now lent alarming credibility to these fears.

The implication of this directive is crystal clear: that registration slips and voting rights during the Direct Primaries may only be selectively issued or recognized for persons considered loyal to the anointed aspirant, while genuine party members who are not aligned with the preferred agenda of the State leadership may be deliberately excluded from participating in the democratic process.

This amounts to political sabotage, institutional abuse and a dangerous assault on internal party democracy.

It is unacceptable that membership registration materials of obtained from the National Headquarters of the Party should suddenly be declared invalid by a State Chairman whose conduct in recent times has become increasingly partisan and controversial.

No State chapter of the Party should possess powers superior to the authority of the National Secretariat of the APC. If this dangerous path is not immediately halted, it could trigger monumental consequences for the APC in Nasarawa State. The Party risks implosion, mass defections, litigations, voter apathy and a complete erosion of trust among loyal party members who have laboured tirelessly for the growth and success of the APC over the years.

More importantly, this development poses a direct electoral threat to the fortunes of the APC in Nasarawa State ahead of the 2027 general elections. The painful experience of the 2023 Presidential Election, where the APC shockingly lost Nasarawa State to the Labour Party despite the State being traditionally regarded as an APC stronghold, should serve as a serious warning.

The Party cannot afford to repeat the mistakes of exclusion, imposition and injustice. A political party that denies its own members the right to freely choose candidates through transparent democratic processes cannot expect unity, loyalty and electoral victory thereafter.

We therefore respectfully call on the National Leadership of the APC and Mr. President, as the foremost leader of the Party, to urgently intervene and call Dr. Aliyu Bello and all those involved in this anti-democratic scheme to order before irreparable damage is done.

*Specifically, we demand the following:*

1. That all duly registered APC members in Nasarawa State be allowed to participate freely in the forthcoming Direct Primaries without intimidation, discrimination or unlawful exclusion.

2. That all valid membership registration slips obtained through lawful channels, including those sourced from the National Headquarters of the Party, be recognized for the purposes of accreditation and voting.

3. That the National Working Committee immediately investigate the controversial directive issued by the Nasarawa State APC Chairman and sanction any official found attempting to manipulate the primary election process.

4. That neutral officials from the National Headquarters be deployed to supervise the conduct of the primaries in Nasarawa State in order to guarantee transparency, fairness and credibility.

5. That the Party leadership resist every attempt to impose candidates against the will of party members.

History has repeatedly shown that injustice within political parties often produces devastating electoral consequences. The APC must not allow personal interests and narrow political calculations to destroy the unity and electoral strength of the Party in Nasarawa State. The survival, stability and victory of the APC in Nasarawa State can only be guaranteed through fairness, inclusiveness and respect for democratic principles.

We trust that this matter will receive the urgent attention it deserves in the interest of peace, justice and the future of our great Party.

Yours faithfully,

Hon. Makpa Malla Esq.

Former member, Nasarawa State House of Assembly and an APC Chieftain.