A former Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Ethics and Privileges, Ossai Nicholas Ossai, has commended the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for adopting direct primaries in the selection of its presidential candidate ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Ossai, who is also the Convener of the Tinubu-Sheriff Support Group, said the adoption of direct primaries would strengthen participatory democracy within the party and give members the opportunity to determine who truly enjoys grassroots support.
The former lawmaker stated this while briefing journalists after submitting his nomination forms to contest for the Ndokwa East/West/Ukwuani Federal Constituency seat of Delta State in the forthcoming elections.
According to him, the APC National Working Committee’s endorsement of direct primaries reflects the democratic ideals enshrined in the Electoral Act and would promote inclusiveness in the party’s internal electoral process.
“The most democratic aspect of the lawmaking and the clause that the current 10th Assembly has put in place is the direct primary. And the APC National Working Committee has aligned with direct primary,” he said.
“You will see when the national chairman spoke three or four days ago, he talked about it, that the APC National Working Committee has adopted direct primary.
“I think direct primary brings about what we call participatory democracy. On that participatory democracy, you will see that whoever emerges victorious, there is always that joy that you receive when a lot of those who voted for you from the beginning were party members,” he stated.
Ossai added that direct primaries would provide legitimacy for candidates who emerge through the process and strengthen party unity after the primaries.
Speaking on his ambition to return to the House of Representatives, he said he still had more to contribute to the development of his constituency based on his legislative experience and past achievements.
“Today, I have also desired to come back to the green chamber, not the red chamber, to be able to address some of the needs of my people,” he said.
The APC chieftain described himself as experienced in legislative duties, oversight functions and accountability, insisting that his track record in parliament speaks for itself.
Reflecting on his time as Chairman of the House Committee on Ethics and Privileges, Ossai said he handled issues before the committee effectively and also carried out critical examinations of agreements signed by the country during his tenure as Chairman of the House Committee on Treaties and Agreements.
On consensus arrangements in party primaries, he noted that the 10th National Assembly made provisions for consensus candidacy for valid reasons, adding that political parties could adopt such arrangements where members collectively agree on a candidate.
