A University Professor has advised political parties in Enugu State to ensure internal democracy as they conduct their primary elections to elect councillorship and chairmanship candidates for October 5, Local Government Election.
Prof Rose Onah, a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Public Administration and Local Government, University of Nigeria Nsukka gave the advice in Nsukka on Friday while speaking with newsmen.
Onah said that, if political parties would allow internal democracy during their primaries by avoiding imposing candidates on their members, it would eliminate rancour, disagreement, violence and protest over the esults of primaries.
” Political parties should avoid imposing candidates on their members but rather allow members to elect an aspirant of their choice as candidates for the October 5 LG Poll in Enugu State.
“Most times, is absence of internal democracy during party primaries that result in rancour, dispute, protest and violence when results is announced,”he said.
The Don who was a former Caretaker Chairman of Nsukka Local Government Council urged party leadership to carry all aspirants along by given them equal playing ground without any form of discrimination.
“Party leadership should carry every aspirant along by ensuring that equal playing ground is given to all aspirants without any discrimination.
“Leadership of the party should also ensure all aspirants abide by the party rule of engagement no matter whose ‘Ox is gored”.
“Aspirants should accept the results of free and fair primaries in good faith since in every contest there must be winner and loser,”she said.
She urged party members to resist any form of financial or material inducements to mortgage their conscience to vote the wrong aspirant as candidate.
“Party members should consider aspirant’s competency, capacity, qualifications and past track records before electing him/her as candidate.
” At times political parties fail general election because they elected the wrong candidates during party primaries,”she said.
Onah urged Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission (ENSIEC) as the electoral
umpire, to ensure that it monitored all political parties primaries so as to know the right and genuine candidates that emerged winners during the primaries.
Our Correspondent reports that, ENSIEC had recently given August 19 as deadline for all political parties to conduct their primaries for the October 5 Local Government poll in the state.
