The Deputy National Chairman (South) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Emma Eneukwu, has confirmed the earlier reports and speculations that the aspirants of various positions for the 2023 general elections under the party spent a lot of money, some running into billions of naira to clinch the tickets.
Chief Eneukwu said that monetisation and materialism destroyed people’s hope that the ruling party would zone its presidential ticket to the Southeast region of Nigeria for the sake of equity and justice.
Daily Trust reports that Eneukwu made the revelation during a lunch organised by friends of the former Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, at the weekend in Abuja.
The chieftain of the ruling party said that the monetisation process of the party’s tickets, particularly the presidential ticket, was responsible for the loss of aspirants who were not willing or able to spend billions of naira.
There were reports that apart from the party’s exorbitant N100 million presidential nomination and expression of interest forms, many of the aspirants paid the delegates between $10,000 and $25,000 to buy their votes.
Speaking about Onu who had also contested the presidential ticket but had zero votes during the party’s special convention held at Eagle Square, Abuja from June 7 to 8, Eneukwu said, “He (Onu) is not ready to buy that position when he is going to serve because some people spent their millions and billions to get there. If they have something to give to society, they will not pay to get there.
“He genuinely wanted to be president so that he can change society, and that was what he wanted Nigerians to buy into.
“But because Nigerians are so materialistic and hungry, they couldn’t see the treasure that God positioned to change this country. One day the truth will manifest; justice can only be delayed but not denied.”
Expressing disappointment in the outcome of the ruling party’s presidential primary election, the former Governor of Enugu State, Okwesilieze Nwodo, and his Anambra State counterpart, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, in separate remarks expressed disappointment with the failure of the APC and the Peoples Democratic Party to have Southeasterners as their presidential candidates.
Onu had during the convention described the party’s failure to zone the presidential ticket to the Southeast as injustice, asking, “Where is justice? Where is equity?
