Thirty-five thousand dollars ($35,000!) or N20 million for an application to be head of any political party in the world is outrageous? The All Progressives Congress, Nigeria’s dominant political party, made this announcement on Tuesday for anyone interested in becoming its national chairman.

It’s insensitive.
It’s all colors of bad.

I understand the goal is to collect donations for the party while discouraging unserious jokesters from competing and overwhelming the field.

The unwanted implications are:

1. Capable people without the financial resources are boxed out or compelled to seek financial backing from possible candidates who would strive to control the party apparatuses at the expense of other candidates, resulting in perpetual intra-party conflicts.
2. People who are poor or marginally rich are discouraged from engaging in participatory and representative politics.
3. Successful candidates then seek to return their “investment” by taking bribes from future candidates to sway elections in their favor.
4. It creates an elitist political environment.
5. Removing party officials for any reason may appear unfair and difficult.

This N20 million is only for the APC’s national chairman; the form costs less as you move down the ranks to state and local government levels. If you wish to dominate your local government chairperson, purchase him/her the application form for around N2 million.

Why do you think Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State spoke condescendingly to Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State the other day? Why do you believe Governor Seyi Makinde can gain control of the Peoples Democratic Party and all of its officials? Why do you believe the late Governor Abiola Ajimobi retained control of the party’s executive committee even after his death?

Do you think it is based on ideological beliefs? I’m not venting o. I honestly do not know what the remedy is. I cannot even call it a problem.

It’s nearly a paradox. The party must be organized in some way. Those who have launched political parties like Tope Fasua and Omoyele Sowore may be able to explain.

I guarantee that the PDP form will cost equally as much, if not more. The PDP form in 2015, if my memory serves me well, was also an exorbitant fee, possibly even N20 million at that time.