APC: Party Supremacy or The Supremacy of Personal Interests?

By Comrade Ikhuenbor Felix Igbinevbo (Mr Figo)

A Call for Fairness, Transparency, and Respect for the Will of the People

For those telling me, “Figo, be a party man and support the stand of the party because party supremacy must be respected by all members,” I sincerely appreciate your concern and your understanding of party politics.

However, I want people to clearly understand that I am not the kind of politician who blindly subscribes to the philosophy of party supremacy when such supremacy is being used to justify injustice, intimidation, unfair treatment, harassment, or the suppression of the rights and voices of ordinary party members.

I do not, and I will never, support any form of supremacy that places the interests of a few powerful individuals above the collective will of the people.

If the party is truly supreme, then the party must also recognize that the will of the people should always come before personal ambition and selfish interests.

The party is made up of people, not a selected few operating behind closed doors for their own political and financial gains.

I can never be part of any system where injustice is institutionalized simply to satisfy the agenda of a handful of individuals who believe power belongs only to them.

It is being alleged in many quarters that some party leaders have collected huge sums of money — reportedly running into hundreds of millions of naira — from various aspirants contesting for positions such as the House of Representatives, Senate, and House of Assembly.

According to widespread allegations, this practice did not start today. It dates back to the periods of councillorship and local government chairmanship selections, where certain leaders monetized the process behind closed doors while presenting imposed decisions to party members under the guise of “party supremacy.”

Ironically, many of those loudly preaching party supremacy today are the same people negotiating personal benefits behind closed doors. Many of those aggressively promoting certain aspirants are not necessarily doing so because of competence, popularity, or the genuine interests of the people, but because of what they stand to gain politically and financially from such arrangements.

What many grassroots members are witnessing today is a situation where unpopular candidates are being imposed on the people simply because certain powerful individuals have personal interests tied to those aspirants.

Once money exchanges hands behind closed doors, pressure is then mounted on party members to accept such decisions in the name of loyalty and party supremacy.

That is not Democracy

Party supremacy cannot and should not exist in an atmosphere of manipulation, intimidation, imposition, and transactional politics.

Party supremacy cannot thrive where transparency is absent and where the collective will of party members is replaced by the interests of a privileged few.

I can never support such lawlessness, injustice, unfairness, and inequity.

If party supremacy must truly exist, then let it be supreme in fairness. Let it be supreme in justice. Let it be supreme in equity, transparency, and accountability.

Party supremacy should not become a tool for manipulation, monetization, and political imposition. It should not be used as a cover for backdoor dealings where money determines who becomes the so-called “preferred candidate” while the voices of grassroots members are ignored.

We are simply saying: Let there be transparency

When there is fairness, openness, credibility, and a transparent process, whoever emerges as the candidate will naturally enjoy the support of the people because everyone will clearly see that the outcome genuinely reflects the collective decision and will of party members.

That is where party supremacy truly becomes meaningful

Party supremacy can only command respect when candidates emerge through a transparent, credible, and collectively accepted process — not through secret negotiations, financial inducements, and the manipulation of internal party structures by a selected few.

For those aspirants who, because of suppression, manipulation, intimidation, or pressure, stepped down for the preferred aspirants of certain powerful individuals, you have only succeeded in proving to your supporters that you were never courageous enough to stand at the forefront of the battle for justice, the fight for good governance, and the struggle for quality representation.

You cannot allow yourself to be intimidated out of your rights and out of the goodwill and support that people genuinely have for you, and still expect those same people to continue taking you seriously politically.

Nevertheless, I wish you all good luck

And for those who entered the race only to negotiate and collect money to step down when the primary election drew closer, the people are watching you carefully. Many of you were never truly interested in the race itself.

You merely gathered supporters, mobilized followers, created noise, and traded the trust and hopes of the people behind closed doors for personal gain.

Tomorrow, you will still come out expecting genuine support from the same people you treated as bargaining tools in private political transactions.

Shame on You!

You were never truly in the race for service, representation, or the advancement of the people. You were only there for transactions.

You were only there to trade the support, emotions, and collective hopes of the people for your own personal interests.

However, I must commend those aspirants who stood their ground and refused to bow to intimidation, oppression, or financial inducement. Those who are saying, “Let us go to the field. Let popularity, credibility, and the will of the people decide the outcome. We are not stepping down. We are not collecting money from anybody.”

Those are the real heroes of Internal Democracy

Those are the people who truly earned the loyalty and respect of their followers.

We are watching all of you closely.

At the end of these primary elections, the people will carefully examine, evaluate, and assess the entire process. Internal judgment will be passed not only on the aspirants, but also on the leadership of the party and the party itself.

That is when we will know whether the party truly placed the interests of the people above the personal interests of a selected few, or whether the interests of a few individuals were placed above the collective will of party members and the general interest of the people.

Only then can anyone genuinely ask the people to come out and campaign for candidates who may have been imposed on the collective wishes and democratic aspirations of others.

The truth remains that without the people, there can be no party. The people are the foundation of every political structure.

Therefore, the interests, voices, and democratic choices of the people must always come first before the interests of a privileged few.

The people must never be reduced to mere spectators in decisions that directly affect their political future. The voice of the grassroots must matter, and the collective will of party members must always prevail over personal interests and private arrangements.

That is the principle I stand for, and that is the position I will continue to defend.

Comrade Ikhuenbor Felix Igbinevbo Popularly Known as Mr Figo.
From Idibo Village, Ohuan Ward, Uhunmwode Local Government Area, Edo State, Nigeria, is a member of All Progressives Congress (APC).