By Akinwale Kasali

The All Progressives Congress, APC, Governorship Primary in Osun State has come and gone. The incumbent Governor Gboyega Oyetola, emerged as the APC flag bearer as the candidate  of the Governorship  Election scheduled for later in the year in a landslide.  He is aiming to be re-elected for a second term.

However, Civil Society Groups which monitored last Saturday’s APC primary have released their preliminary report on its lows and highs.

The Groups, under the aegis of  Civil Society Coalition for Mandate Protection, CSC-MAP, said Direct Primary which appears to be the surest way to guarantee public inclusion in the process of selecting aspirants within the party should be upheld by all political parties, the group said in a statement on Monday.

In its preliminary report, the CSC-MAP which deployed 400 monitors  said Direct Primary, in theory  gives the people a rare opportunity to pick their leaders, and strengthens a deep sense of public participation in the democratic process.

In a statement signed by its programme officer, Samuel Ogunsona, the Group said the process also promotes grassroots involvement in the process leading to the emergence of candidates while providing the opportunity to the masses to meet the aspirants long before the elections are conducted.

The CSC-MAP commended the Osun people for shunning violence, from reports from many parts of the state and for conducting themselves in a civil manner without resorting to killings in the name of seeking political power.

It said while the process has produced a candidate, it does not mean that the Direct Primary method is not vulnerable from manipulation by political actors. It described Direct Primary as a ‘learning curve’ not without landmines.

Speaking further, the Civil Society Group said some of the participants who spoke to CSC-MAP monitors and from general observations listed some of the strong points during the Osun election to include prompt arrival of officials, capacity to involve all the wards and polling units and the commendable attitude of other aspirants listed to have lost in the electoral contest.

The CSC-MAP listed the sour points to include the following:

*The lack of effective women participation in the organization of the election and also in participation as aspirants. None of the aspirants is a woman while the APC Committee set up to conduct the election had no single woman.

*The absence of youth inclusion, all the candidates being above 55 years. This does not speak well for the future of a country where over 60 per cent are youths.

*The domination of the party structure in the State by the ruling actors in the All Progressives Congress, (APC). The control of the organs of the party has overbearing impact on the outcome of the election. This makes the outcome of the election predictable.

*The turn-out of voters in the Osun Primary raise a lot of questions. The Osun State Governor, Gboyega Oyetola recorded 222, 169 votes while 12,921 was recorded by Chief Mohood Adeoti. The third aspirant, former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Lasun Yusuf secured 460 votes. The total number of voters is 235,550. This means that the total number of APC members in Osun State is 234,550, in a population of 4.7million (2016) people. This raises fundamental questions about public interest in political parties even though politics is a major calling in the State. From the votes announced, the population of the APC members is less than 5 percent of the population of Osun State. Democracy and good governance can only be sustained where majority of the people are involved, have confidence and are prepared to invest in the process. Nigerians should have deep concerns that democracy which is Government of the people by the people and for the people should not become Government of party members, by party members and for party members only.

*There were complaints that

one of the major aspirants, the incumbent Gov Oyetola, is also a member of the National Secretariat of the party which organized the election.

*Monitors identified the lack of issue-based campaign prior to the Primary. Most voters who spoke to monitors could not identify the economic and social motivations for their actions. Most appear to be merely concerned about being a member of the ruling structure in the state.

*While Osun is the hotbed of illegal mining linked to a string of kidnaping in the state, the majority of the people are not convinced that the issues have been addressed by contenders.

*The fees for the contestants are too high and beyond the reach of majority of the people of Osun State. This means the league of aspirants will be dominated by the stupendously rich.

*Strong suspicion of huge funds given to some party leaders at the local level to ensure the victory of a particular candidate. There is a strong indication that money played a very critical role in the Direct Primary. While funds wre not distributed openly, some locals said they were told they would be ‘compensated’ after the primary by the State Government.

*This Group said this follows a dangerous pattern that characterize elections in Nigeria where increasingly, elections are not won and are not likely to be won by a credible candidate but rather by the highest bidder. The outcome of the Osun APC primary is not different and appears to have followed the trend.

*It also said it portends a terrific future for democracy in Nigeria as voters appear to be conditioned by immediate gains with less interest in their future and that of their children.

*At some wards in Ile Ife, Iwo, Osogbo, Ilesa, Ede, some locals could not cast their votes due to activities of armed thugs who prevented them from exercising their franchise.

*There were complaints of non-availability of party registers which raises concerns about accreditation of voters in some polling units.

*Osun State needs more polling units. There is uneven distribution of polling units in Osun State which does not auger well for voters’ accessibility.