President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Eric Angel Carbonu, has urged members of political parties to personally fund their participation in internal elections rather than relying on aspirants for transportation, accommodation and other forms of support.
Mr. Carbonu made the comments in response to concerns from some political actors about the implementation of the Supreme Court’s ruling on political party delegate systems.
In a Facebook post, he disagreed with suggestions that political parties would find it difficult to organise congresses under the new arrangement, arguing that party members who want to participate in leadership elections must meet the requirements set out in their party constitutions.
“If you are a member of a political party, you should be in good standing according to the constitution of the political party, which includes being a paying member,” he said.
According to Mr. Carbonu, members who seek to influence the selection of party representatives should be prepared to bear the cost of their involvement.
“If you want to contribute to the selection of representatives, you should be able to finance yourself one way or the other,” he stated.
The NAGRAT President criticised the practice where political delegates expect candidates to provide transportation, accommodation and other incentives before taking part in internal party elections.
“This issue of patronage and godfatherism, where people expect to be transported, given fares and accommodation, all adds to the system of influence we are trying to abolish,” he said.
He maintained that ending such practices would help promote transparency within political parties, strengthen internal democracy and reduce the influence of vote-buying during internal elections.
