2023 Elections: Women, Youths, Others, Fund-wise Schemed Out – Adesanya–Davies

Re: 2023: Outrageous Fees for Nomination Forms Undemocratic – Yiaga Africa

On 2023 elections, in an Article titled: “Outrageous Fees for Nomination Forms Undemocratic,” by Yiaga Africa, on Thursday 21 April 2022 at Admin Politics, in The Insider, a Nigerian frontline Election Monitoring Group, Sam Itodo, on Yiaga Africa has described as undemocratic, the decisions of Political Parties in Nigeria to sell their presidential forms to aspirants at very outrageous prices.

Sam Itodo, on Yiaga Africa said, “The development would continue to sabotage the nation’s political process by limiting the chances of providing good leadership for Nigerians.”

The All Progressives Congress (APC) had resolved to sell its presidential form at the cost of #100m. While the Expression of Interest form is fixed at the cost of N30 million, the nomination form cost N70 million.This was part of the decision ratified at the emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held on Wednesday in Abuja.

Reacting to Yiaga’s assertion, Prof Funmilayo Adesanya–Davies another frontline female politician, a Presidential Candidate in 2019 election and a Presidential Aspirant who has earlier declared to contest for the 2023 presidential bid under PDP; but has suddenly decided to decline based on this exorbitant amounts and costs of Nomination and expression of interest forms which were claimed to be free for women; says, “Women, Youths, Others, Fund-wise are already schemed out financially.”

In case of the Presidential candidates, she alludes, for instance, “How would you claim the cost of EoI – N30 million, is free for the women? N30 million is the free fee! How would you say the nomination form cost of N70 million for the presidential ticket is affordable to the Youths? Nigeria we hail thee! How will civil servants participate and contest to contribute their quota to the development of the nation? They are already out of the bracket financially! Or we should all become independent Candidates since the bill has currently been approved?”

Similarly, The Peoples Democratic Party )PDP) had earlier fixed N40 million as the cost for its presidential candidates to obtain form. While the Expression of Interest form is put at N5 million, the Nomination Form is put at N35 million. These is also not too palatable either!

However, the cost of these APC, rilling party’s forms we would all agree is the reflection of current inflation doomed rate of our economy in Nigeria, they have driven the nation into. As such, one can calculate inflation from the price of the APC Presidential Form over the years:
2015 – NGN 27.5M
2019 – NGN 45.5M
2023 -NGN 100M

Adesanya-Davies says, “She’ll rather go ahead to support anyone that emerges as the Presidential candidate under the plaform of the PDP, for now rather than pay such an exorbitant price for the EoI for women which was said to be FREE.” As we all know, there two major parties now in Nigeria that can win Presidential election – APC and PDP”. “We need to pick the lesser evil of both, there is no need descipating  energy at this critical and crucial hour,” she added.

Let’s take for instance the calculations,  NGN 100M is about the total salary of a Professor in Fifty  (50) years  of service and as such the total salary of a Civil servant at the highest cadre at 65yers of service – as at the time due for retirement. Oh, so it’s NGN 100M for payment to contest election! – She exclaims. ALL HAIL APC FIGHTING CORRUPTION!!!

How would one expect this!
Again, she elucidates, “While the salary of a President of Nigeria per anum is N14,058,820.00K. I don’t understand, I cannot fathom it for heaven’s sake, how will anyone apply for a job with N100M just to earn less than N15 M later..”Wake up Nigerians and wake up Nigeria, the crawling giant of Africa !!!

Anybody that goes there buying forms at these rates, would definitely have to first recuop all their monies back, once they win and when they get to government:
“Appoved at the 11th NEC Meeting of All Progressive Congress, total approved amounts for Expression of Interest / Nomination Form for the 2023 Elections in are:
House of Assembly – N2.000.000
House of Reps – N10.000.000
Senate – N20.000.000
Governorship – N50.000.000
Presidential – N100.000.000″.

Further, reacting on Sunrise Daily of Channels Television and monitored by The Insider, Sam Itodo, the Executive Director, Yiaga Africa has also said: “As unemployment increases, poverty also increases, the Political Parties are also increasing the prices of Nomination forms.

“The critical question is that how many Nigerians and young people can afford this fund pegged by Political Parties.

“I hear people say yes, there are a lot of people that can afford this and people can mobilize their resources but don’t we threaten and undermine the whole concept of democracy if we justify why Political Parties should continually increase cost of Nomination forms without having discussion on what should be the set criteria for the people running for offices and the law already made that provision.

“The more we continue to increase the funding and money spent, what you do is you increase the negative competitive nature of our elections. So this do or die nature of our politics is reinforced by this cost. This also have implication for violence because when people have spent this kind of money, they don’t want to be short-changed and make it a duty to circumvent the election just because they want to win.

“I think there is a determination on the side of the Nigeria Political class to continue to recycle power within the microscopic fee and they have hijacked political power and make it difficult for new entrants because political power in this part of the world is not use to advance the common good. It is about primitive accumulation of wealth and subjecting and weaponising poverty against the people.

“What you see is that people use political power to oppress the masses and the poor in the society. So what happens to the collective good if Political power were used to advance the common good, we will be having different conversation.

“In fact, the party would not peg the high cost of fees because what they seek to achieve is to say yes , for them this is a due diligence measure. No due diligence to recruit Competent People but due diligence to limit access to the political process by more competent Nigerians and it is very sad. It is not about the APC and PDP, it is about a culture and a paradigm that influences how Political Parties reason.

“The second point is that when people perpetrate themselves in office, they become an echo chamber and so this discussion about poverty,around how it is difficult to raise this amount of money does not get to them.I just think that even when they know that these fees are high and still find it difficult to get.

“I have looked at this fee from 2015 for the APC, they started with about #27.5m ,it moved to about #45m for presidential and then it moved to #100m, so in 2027, it might be around #200m.

“I know there can be economic arguments that can be made but I don’t see a reason why the more your poverty rises, the more unemployment increases and level of corruption and insecurity, you are also increasing the cost of Nomination forms.” Added Sam Itodo, of Yiaga Africa.

Adesanya-Davies therefore concludes, “I don’t understand and cannot figure out the mentality of the Nigerian government and our politicians and lawmakers anymore; that’s why I kept saying, that the next President of Nigeria should be a woman and an academic and I, Funmilayo Adesanya–Davies, I am ready to serve the nation, Nigeria, my country and your country and put us back on track, on issues as economy, insecurity and electricity, as these three are the most pressing needs of the nation.