Protests over nomination forms cost by aspirants seeking elective offices on the platform of All Progressives (APC) are yet to abate ahead of the 2023 general election.

On Wednesday, Nigeria’s ruling party released its primary election timetable ahead of the 2023 elections, after a meeting of its national executive committee (NEC).

The party fixed the cost of nomination forms for presidential aspirants for N100 million, while those for governorship will pay N50 million.

But the minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige on Friday, decried the high cost of All Progressives Congress (APC) nomination and expression of interest forms in the election.

He disclosed this when he featured on Politics Today programme aired on Channels Television.

Ngige, APC Presidential aspirant who condemned the price for the forms, stressed that the party’s Presidential ought not to be sold beyond N50 million.

But he stated that would abide by the position of the ruling party.

“I only Budgeted N50 million for APC form”, in the light of current economic realities.

“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”, he said.

Continuing, the minister said, “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 dsay 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).

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