In the Electoral Act Amendment Bill passed by the Senate, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rejected the adoption of direct primary for the nomination of candidates for elections in political parties.
According to news reports, the Senate amended the Electoral Act on Tuesday in plenary, including the recommendation of a direct primary system for political parties.
Senator Yahaya Abdullahi, the Senate Leader, introduced a motion to change Clause 87 of the Act to reflect direct primary voting.
“A political party seeking to nominate candidates for elections under this Bill shall hold direct primaries for aspirants to all elective positions, which shall be monitored by the Commission,” according to the new Clause 87 Subsection.
The Party, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, condemned the development, calling the passage of direct primary "a retrogressive provision that seeks to undo the gains made in the country's electoral practice since 1999."
“The PDP believes that the provision is intended to raise the costs of nomination procedures, thereby handing them over to moneybags against Nigerians' wishes and aspirations.
"With the exception of the APC, which intends to use looted funds in future elections," the party stated, "hardly any political party will be able to raise the cost of conducting internal elections through a direct primary process."
It urged the Senate to use its appropriate legislative tools right away to reverse its decision on the direct primary.
The party stated that such a method of conducting party primaries does not reflect the majority of Nigerians' wishes and aspirations.