The Minister of Labour, Employment, and Productivity, Dr. Chris Ngige, has revealed that the APC has budgeted N50 million for the acquisition of nomination and declaration of interest forms for the presidential election.
Ngige, a presidential candidate for the All Progressives Congress, also remarked that now that the ruling party has raised the price tag to N100 million, his followers will financially assist him.
These were made public on Thursday by the minister when he appeared on Politics Today, a current affairs broadcast on Channels Television.
Ngige stated that he had no choice but to follow the ruling party’s position.
Ngige, who served as Governor of Anambra State during the 7th National Assembly, was also a member of the Senate.
Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the APC’s National Chairman, was described as “a serious minded person” by the minister, who recalled his days with Adamu in the Nigerian Governors’ Forum and the Senate.
Aspirants in the Peoples Democratic Party and other political parties, according to the minister, may pay less for election forms because they are not members of the ruling party.
He partly said, “Whether I’m happy with that or I’m not happy with that, that is their own position; they have done their calculation, they have done their work.
“For Adamu to say N100m, he has seen certain things. And I was a party official in PDP, unfortunately. I was Assistant National Secretary and Zonal Secretary in the South-East. So, I know the workings of the party.
“Let me give you a typical example. After the sale of these forms and candidates emerge, both governors, senators and others; when you tell them to contribute to the party, you won’t see them. That was our experience in the PDP. That was our experience in the ACN (the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria).
“That was our experience in the APC. I can tell you that. And they have done the right thing by saying that the young folks – the young ones – have a 50 per cent discount.
“For somebody like me, I was budgeting N50m – my supporters and I. But when the thing came out and it was N100m, they started calling me.”
Talking about other presidential aspirants in the APC, Ngige stated, “It will be a touch race but the best man will emerge.”
When asked who the person would be, the minister said, “I don’t know. I’m not a soothsayer but I know that the best man would emerge.”
When asked how he would raise the funds to obtain the forms, the minister said, “I have supporters; I have well wishers, don’t bother about me.”
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