Nigerians Knock LP Over Dollarized Primaries In Edo — Says Party Worst Than APC, PDP
THE just concluded Labour Party (LP) dollarized gubernatorial primary election last week Friday has angered admirers and political observers against the leadership of the party and the contending aspirants who rolled out millions of dollars to purchase the party’s ticket for September 21, 2024 Governorship election.
Delegates numbering over 2000 persons who participated in the primaries were said to have been bribed with the sum of $1,000 each to pick the the winning candidate for the party in the coming election.
A few of the delegates interviewed by Trojan News Media Correspondent said the highest bidder for the race initially offered them $300 with an appeal to vote for him and return to collect the balance of $700 later, which he fulfilled. Next to that was another aspirant of the party who offered $300 with a promise to fix the state but was rejected by the delegates.
Flapping the wads of $1,000 bill, one of the elated delegates said “I have collected my share of the dollars’ palliatives, the nation can go to hell”.
Miffed by the developments, an onlooker at the scene of the primaries election at Bishop Kelly Pastorial centre, Benin City knocked the party and the aspirants over what he tagged open purchase of votes and destruction of the party’s ethos that is anchored on frugal, austere and rigidly puritanical principles by its founding fathers.
“No matter how we try to rationalize the issue of spending $1,000 for over 300 delegates each, we shall all circle back to the question of integrity and moral rectitude in the Nigeria politics that has been defective.
“What exactly is the ‘progressive love’ and birthing a ‘dramatic movement’ and a ‘new Nigeria is possible’ if aspirants invest such huge foreign currency under a threatening economy to secure a party ticket?
“The truth is, we are all contributory accomplices one way or the other to the decadence Nigeria is faced with today. The only difference is our level of guilt in the miasma of corruption.
When it favours us, the crime is no crime, but when it does not, all hell is let loose.
“I often laugh wild when we try as much as possible to baptize angels from our hell”, he roared.
A Constitutional lawyer and Civil Rights activist has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to immediately arrest and prosecute those involved in open dollarization of Nigeria politics in Edo State at a time the nation’s economy is severely battered as result of dollars racketeering.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must swing into action as soon as possible and arrest Labour Party’s votes buyers in dollars in Edo State because presently countless Nigerian citizens have been arrested by the EFCC task force who are said to be trading in dollars instead of the Naira.
“Nobody will take President Tinubu serious until foreign currency violators rules are arrested and prosecuted with immediate effect”.
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