The manner in which touts invaded the venue and disrupted last Saturday’s All Progressives Congress, (APC) Governorship primaries in Ekiti state came as a rude shock to Nigerians and political observers at large.
The congress which held at the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, was disrupted by thugs who disrupted voting, threatening to beat up the party officials, in spite of the presence of security men.
They thugs that challenged the primaries organising committee had allegedly colluded with some top APC stalwarts to rig the exercise.
The Ekti Governorship APC primaries, which had About 30 aspirants, notably a former governor and chieftain of the APC, Segun Oni; former Speaker, Femi Bamisile; Presidential Adviser on Political Matters, Babafemi Ojudu; former senators Ayo Arise and Gbenga Aluko; Mojisola Yaya-Kolade, Bimbo Daramola, had been fiercely contested with none of the aspirants agreeing to step down from the race in spite of appeals by the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
However, the outcome of the primaries did not come as a surprise, the Ekiti state chapter of the APC had been engulfed in internal crisis for several months, with party chieftains being accused of working to favour of some candidates in the governorship race.
It is also instructive to note the Oyegun led national leadership of the party had failed to resolve several crises in several states across of the country, until recently, when President Buhari, mandated the leader of the party, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to head the reconciliation effort.
Perhaps, the outcome of the Ekiti primaries was a reflection of the failure in the leadership of the party to manage its internal crisis amicably.
Until now, the party had been engulfed in internal crisis in several states, namely Kaduna, Imo, Lagos and Sokoto, just to mention a few; which if not urgently checked, could adversely affect its chances of retaining them beyond the 2019 general elections.
Observers however, believed that the fracas that emanate from the primaries would have been avoided if the APC had been able to prune down the number of the governorship aspirants in the primaries.
However, the manner the governorship primaries were disrupted by touts, not only shows the desperation of our politicians and the cracks in the APC, it also portends danger towards a peaceful conduct of the 2019 general elections in the country.
What happens in Ekiti could be a signs of what to expect in coming elections. However, what is worrying is the poor history of punishment of electoral offenders in the country.
As the 2019 general election approaches, it is however, instructive to note that similar occurrences could only be avoided if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) brings electoral offenders in the country to book, while security agencies live up to their responsibilities.
