APC Direct Primaries Reflect Transparency, Internal Democracy – Benjamin Kalu

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, has defended the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s decision to adopt direct primaries, describing the system as a clear reflection of transparency, accountability and true internal democracy within the ruling party.

Kalu made the remarks during a stakeholders’ meeting in Abia State ahead of the APC presidential primary election, where he reaffirmed the party’s commitment to allowing grassroots members to determine the outcome of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid through a credible and transparent process.

According to the Deputy Speaker, President Tinubu personally insisted that democratic principles must guide the exercise, regardless of his position as the nation’s leader.

“Though he is the President of the country, he will not support anything that is not transparent, that does not have credibility, and that lacks accountability in the electoral process,” Kalu stated.

Kalu, who is serving as the presidential primary coordinator and coalition officer for Abia State, disclosed that all electoral materials required for the conduct of the exercise had already been received by the state chapter of the party.

He explained that the materials include 184 ward result sheets, 17 local government collation forms and one state coalition form designated specifically for Abia State.

According to him, the 184 result sheets correspond with the total number of wards across the state, while the 17 collation forms are meant for the local government areas.

He further noted that the single state coalition form would contain the harmonised results from across Abia before being presented at the national level in Abuja alongside results from other states.

“This is the document I’m going to present in Abuja. We cannot afford mistakes because this is the final state result,” he said.

The Deputy Speaker also outlined the operational structure mapped out for the presidential primary in the state, revealing that the exercise would be supervised through a three-tier arrangement comprising polling unit committees, ward committees and local government committees, all of which would report to a central state working committee.

To ensure inclusiveness and smooth coordination, Kalu directed party stakeholders from the three senatorial districts of the state to nominate representatives to serve on the state coordination team.

He emphasised that the APC leadership was determined to ensure the process is seen by members and the public as genuinely democratic rather than symbolic.

Kalu therefore urged party faithful across the state to mobilise massively and actively participate in the presidential primary exercise.

He also directed that results from all other primaries, including those for the House of Assembly, House of Representatives, Senate and governorship positions, be collated and transported to Abuja immediately after the elections.