Mr Kayode Adekunle, Youth Leader, All Progressives Congress (APC), Ijumu Local Government Area, Kogi, has appealed to the party’s national leadership to reduce nominations forms fees being charged aspirants.
Adekunle made the appeal in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lokoja on Thursday, and urged that the fees should be made affordable for young political aspirants.
The APC fixed its presidential nomination form at N40 million and expression of interest form at N5 million. For governorship, the nomination form is N20 million and expression of interest is N2.5 million.
For the Senate, the nomination form costs N7 million while the expression of interest costs N1 million. Cost of form for House of Representatives aspirants is N3.5 million and the expression of interest form, N350, 000.
House of Assembly is N750, 000 for nomination form and N100, 000 for expression of interest.
The youth leader said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s intention of signing the “Not-Too-Young-to-Run’’ Bill had not been demonstrated in the costs of the nomination forms announced by the party.
He said that if the prices of nomination forms were reduced, it would encourage some youths to contest and be part of the electioneering.
He stated that youths should no longer be left out of political contests.
According to Adekunle, the percentage of youth population and their contributions to the success of the party’s electioneering in the forthcoming general elections need to be factored into the costing of nomination forms.
He appealed that forms for House of Assembly and House of Representatives should attract moderate fees to pave way for young aspirants into the legislative arm of government.
©Daily Post
