Editors’ note: The writer, Buchi Obichie, takes the APC to task over the third term senatorial bid of the former Plateau state governor, Joshua Dariye. She points out that Dariye has been convicted of financial impropriety and is currently serving out a 14-year jail sentence; and so, should not be allowed to contest for the party’s primary. She reminds the ruling party of the dictates of the constitution and of its own anti-corruption fight, and urges it to do the right thing!
I usually start my mornings with an hour of CNN world news. I get to the office early, and I take in that one hour of information from around the world before the decoder gets tuned to Channels TV, our leading local news station, for the most important news stories from around the country. So, usually, before the day ends, I have a pretty balanced understanding of the most important stories from within and without.
Anyway, the most important news story on CNN this week has been the Brett Kavanaugh story. The candidate for the US Supreme Court had his hearing postponed over allegations of sexual misconduct by a former high school mate, Prof Christine Blasey Ford.
The senators on the judiciary committee - even though divided along partisan lines - recognizing the severity of the matter, eventually made the decision to invite both parties for hearings, before deciding whether to proceed with votes…or not.
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Now, we don’t know for sure, how this matter would eventually pan out; but the fact that the brakes were applied in a process that was scheduled to run full steam ahead, shows that there is still some respect for due process and the rule of law – unlike what is obtainable in some other climes.
On the national front, one of the most important news stories has been about Senator Joshua Dariye and the fact that the lawmaker, who is currently serving out a 14-year prison term for financial misdeeds, has submitted his nomination form to the APC, to run for a third term in the Senate.
Wonders shall never end!
How does a person who has been convicted and sentenced to jail for a serious crime, and who is currently serving his time, even have the effrontery to purchase a form and submit it to his party? And how can any party which claims to be fighting corruption, even have the heart to accept that form from the convicted individual?
Now, according to the APC publicity secretary in Plateau state, Chindo Dafat, Dariye’s supporters have even begun campaigning for the imprisoned lawmaker. Dafat went on to say - rather arrogantly - that Dariye was “still very popular and relevant in Plateau Central in spite of his current ordeals” and can “win the primary elections from prison.”
Then, in a bid to justify the rationale behind Dariye’s action, Dafat stated further: “If Dariye wins elections from prison, he will not be the first Nigerian to do that. Iyiola Omisore, from Osun, once won a Senate seat while in prison.”
Excuse you? That was a very different circumstance!
In 2003, Iyiola Omisore indeed won a Senate seat while he was in jail; but it should be pointed out that he was never convicted for that crime. Omisore had only been remanded in jail while his trial - relating to the Bola Ige murder - was ongoing. He was eventually found not guilty. So, he was never convicted and was not sentenced to jail as punishment.
That’s the difference that Dafat conveniently chose to overlook.
The APC’s Plateau publicity secretary disclosed that the party hopes that Dariye’s conviction will eventually be overturned, and that he would also be granted a state pardon. However, that does not erase the fact that the constitution dictates that no person shall be qualified for election, if within a period of less than 10 years before the date of the election, he has been convicted and sentenced for an offence involving dishonesty!
So, how could the APC have gotten this so wrong? Why are the party’s leaders allowing this campaign of shame to proceed? Why are they choosing to rubbish their ‘war against corruption’ by allowing a person convicted of such practices, who is currently in jail, to contest for their primaries? What is going on here?
At this point, I would have expected party leaders to prevail on Dariye to just quit while he’s at it!
Initially, when the matter was brought up, the APC national secretary, Yekini Nabena, dismissed it as being a rumor. He said he had reviewed the list of aspirants from Plateau and did not see Dariye’s name there.
He reportedly stated: “I have gone to the list for Plateau state; I did not see his name. But if somebody has managed to collect form for him, he will be screened out. There is no way he can contest on our platform.”
Only time will tell, if the APC indeed screens Dariye out; but in the interest of integrity and respect for the constitution and rule of law, I suggest the party does so.
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What will it say about a ruling party, if a man who has been convicted of financial impropriety as governor, can win primaries; and maybe even go on to win an election? They are the ruling party afterall, and have ‘resources’ to ensure victory for their candidate(s)!
Is it that the party has a sinister plan in play? If not, how can they make such calculation, if they are not certain that the conviction will be overturned? Is there already an ‘underground effort’ to get the conviction to be overturned? But even if it is – eventually - that still does not erase the initial ruling or negate the dictates of the constitution.
I dare say that as a nation, we cannot allow such craziness and blatant absurdity to prevail. We are at a point where we have to stand up for what is right or go down in infamy as the nation that ‘never misses an opportunity to miss an opportunity’.
And as a party, the APC has a choice to walk the anti-corruption talk, or prove its critics right. The choice is theirs; and we are watching closely!
This opinion piece was written by Buchi Obichie.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent the editorial policy of NAIJ.com.
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