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To achieve sustainable democracy, we must understand that there is more to democracy than elections and voting. The fact that a nation chooses her leaders through the ballot box does not necessarily translate to democracy. There are certain tenets upon which any democracy can be nurtured and sustained. There are at least two approaches to promoting internal democracy in political parties; one is advocacy, and the second is legal or regulatory, and APC has set this standard and precedence in this aspect.
Sovereignty of the people, majority rule and minority rights, the rule of law and good governance, respect for civil and political rights, mass literacy, economic prosperity, social development, free press, and an independent judiciary must be upheld. Sustainable democracy can only be attained when the conditions listed above are prevalent in the society. The more people that are involved directly in choosing their representatives or selection, the more democratic the procedures are in a given society.
To a large extent, political parties, in theory, ought to advance political pluralism, enhance citizens participation in the political process, broaden the representation of different political opinions and ideologies in the governance process, ensure the peaceful and democratic transfer of political power at both National, State and Local Government levels, enhance the accountability of Governments, and give necessary legitimacy to both the Government of the day and the Political System as a whole.
The Osun State Primary Elections that produced the APC flagbearer Hon. Gboyega Isiaka Oyetola is seen as one the most transparent and credible elections, under the leadership of National Chairman Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. Indeed the party has once again demonstrated their pledge and commitment to give Nigerians free, fair, and credible elections come 2019. The National Party Leaders are seen to drive this transparency process in the spirits of democracy to strengthen the Party with equity, fairness, and justice.
The Osun State direct primary election process truly attests to the fact that democracy is for the people. This is different from normal process where only selected Party Delegates will participate but, with this new innovation, all card carrying members of the party participates directly in the process of choosing the flag-bearer of the Party which allows equal representation and direct participation in the election. I must commend the leadership of the Party for their sincerity of purpose in strengthening our democracy.
The involvement of all APC members in candidate nomination will ensure that the Party chooses the candidate of the people. It will also serve to galvanise the party membership for the General Elections that lies ahead. Moreover, direct primaries will serve as a future deterrent to those who might have tried to corrupt the delegate system of obtaining nominations. Besides, this will give every members a sense of ownership of the outcome of the exercise, holding the Government and the representatives accountable irrespective of all shortcomings and drawbacks observed during the exercise in Osun State, direct primaries election process is still the best because it is transparent, free and fair.
The Kogi State APC under the leadership of his Excellency, Governor Yahaya Bello and the Chairman of the party Hon. Abdullahi Bello [Dollar] has welcome this development as good omen to our democracy. Pledged that the credibility and transparency of Osun State direct primaries will also be replicated in Kogi State because, this system eliminates the emerging trend where aspirants camp delegates and induce each with huge amount of money. It will also reduce drastically manipulation to a large extent. The process will enhance the internal democracy of the Party politics and also ensure popular participation, and deepen our democracy and making the electoral process sustainable.
Democracy is deepened and sustainable when there is good governance and this is the central goal of Kogi State APC under the leadership of Hon Abdullahi Bello.
Good governance is imperative for social and economic progress. There are key indicators of good governance in any society viz; Rule of law –Democracy is short-changed by decision-making that is democratic only in name. The Constitution and actual written laws must be obeyed and upheld, while due process must be followed. Things should be done in an orderly, predictable manner, and for sustainability of democracy, political parties, must have respect for democratic governance and democratic institutions.
The abiding principle of a democratic Government is majority rule, one in which supreme power is held by the people under a free and fair electoral system. In an ideal democracy, the people possess the constitutionally guaranteed rights to choose who govern them at any given point in time and that is what APC has demonstrated in Osun State direct primary elections. There is need, therefore, to strengthen political parties so that they do not constitute a weak link in the democratic process. As we strive to support the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)to credible elections, we must begin to pay attention in our developmental process to the strengthening of Party Systems and Political Parties.
Finally, political parties must plan for the present and future needs of the people for democracy to be sustainable. Sustainable democracy needs strong and sustainable political parties with the capacity to represent citizens and provide policy choices that demonstrate their ability to govern for the public good. For this to happen, civic leaders and elected representatives must embrace the principle of deferred gratification and long-term planning that has the welfare of the people at its core. Together if we take immediate action, we have the power to build a people-oriented and sustainable democracy.
May Nigeria and APC led Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari and State Government under Governor Yahaya Bello succeed.
– Abdulrahim Omeiza Habib
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