Former Vice President and chieftain of the
governing All Progressives Congress (APC) Alhaji
Atiku Abubakar, yesterday came down on his party
as he publicly described its activities in recent
times as undemocratic.

Atiku who further chided the leadership of the party
over its inability to organize the statutory meetings
for its organs, said that the lack of internal
democracy has made the party and others parties
turn into bullies.


On his part, Chairman of the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) Prof. Mahmoud
Yakubu, who was the keynote speaker at the event,
stated that the electoral empire under his watch has
recorded major success in the recent time,
assuring that the body will not hesitate to deregister
ineffective political party if need be.


The former Vice President specifically called
attention of the APC Deputy National Chairman
(North), Shaibu Lawal, who represented the party’s
National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, who
was on the high table to take notice of his speech
while he was making his submission gathering at
the 2nd Inter Party Advisory Council of Nigeria
(IPAC) annual conference yesterday in Abuja, which
centered on internal party democracy.


Atiku said: “For a number of years now we have had
political parties, even governing ones, which hardly
hold meetings of their important organs, including
those meant for the democratic selection of their
leadership, or even constitute institutions
prescribed in their Constitution.

“In the absence of those meetings and elections,
their existing leadership, often under the direction of
the Executive at the state or federal level, fill the
void. That’s not party building but party bullying. And
it’s certainly not a way to democratize parties and
aggregate their members’ opinions, interests and
aspirations.


“This means that efforts to deepen Nigeria’s
democracy must include efforts at democratizing
our political parties. The institutionalization of
democracy in our internal party processes will help
us deepen democracy in Nigeria. Leaders are more
likely to tolerate opposition from citizens and other
parties if they tolerate it within their own party.


“The lack of internal democracy in political parties
is one of the reasons for the fraught relationships
among parties and their elected representatives
and the legislature and the executive. The loyalty of
some in the legislature and executive lies not with
the party but with a godfather who sponsored them,
and the godfather may even be in a rival political
party. Such anomalies will reduce if internal
democracy flourishes in our political parties, and by
extension the wider society.


“The selection of leaders in a democracy is a
serious business because so many other things
ride on it. Whenever we get it wrong the nation or a
part thereof suffers. We must strive to get it right
most of the time. And it is the voters who should
freely make that determination. I therefore thank the
IPAC for organizing this conference and for inviting
me to chair it,” he noted.





Continue reading here http://leadership.ng/2017/08/01/atiku-blasts-apc-says-party-undemocratic-bullying/

foolish man

Isn't that the nature of almost all political parties in Nigeria? All na Scam

You are officially welcome to "The Beginning of the end of Nigeria's ruling party"

Making their intentions known on time, no wahala baba, we know your type

Atiku may be right though

APC have rubbished our democracy

What do you have to say lala

It's all "SHAKARA" for 2019.