By Rayyanu Bala

Party politics always comes with drama, intrigue, and all forms of shenanigans. What suits you today may become a source of disdain tomorrow. Since yesterday, social, online, and mainstream media have been awash with stories of one aspirant’s camp accusing the APC leadership of forcing local party executives to toe a line different from what they expect. They also condemned the state executive for acting contrary to democratic norms.
The Nasarawa State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in its response, rejected the claims and described them as attempts to misrepresent legitimate political consultations as coercion. The party insisted that its processes ahead of the 2027 elections remain democratic, transparent, and inclusive.
Indeed, from the APC’s position, every genuine member of the party in Nasarawa is expected to align with its stance. It is inconsistent with party loyalty for any member to publicly criticize the leadership while still claiming allegiance to the party. Such actions are unethical and contrary to established political norms.
The outrage from the camp of this aspirant, especially their criticism of the use of ward party executives by the state executive in Nasarawa State, is quite puzzling. One may then begin to wonder: what is the basis of this criticism? Ward, local government, and zonal executives of the party are, by the party constitution, answerable to the state executive, just as the state executive is answerable to the national body. Therefore, there is no valid reason for raising eyebrows over this. To claim that local party executives are being coerced is misleading.
What transpired on Monday, when party executives across the 147 wards converged in Lafia to show support for the leader of the party and Executive Governor of Nasarawa State, Engr. Abdullahi Sule, has always been standard practice. It is therefore deeply hypocritical for anyone to criticize the actions of the state executive.
The camp of the aspirant, which is currently the most vocal in accusing the state party executive, is merely attempting to rewrite history to suit a narrow political agenda. The involvement of ward executives in political coordination did not begin under Governor Abdullahi Sule and Dr. Aliyu Bello. This is neither their invention nor a new development. It is a long-established political strategy, particularly entrenched during the administration of Senator Umaru Tanko Al-Makura.
So where was this so-called moral crusaders then? Where were these defenders of “democracy” when the same ward structures were actively used in favour of certain interests particularly in 2019? The answer is simple: these individuals were not only silent at the time, but they also celebrated the use of such structures since it served their interests. Now that it no longer benefits them, they complain.
What we are witnessing from this aspirant’s camp is nothing but selective indignation and political opportunism. It is dishonest to demonize one individual for continuing a system that others built, normalized, and benefited from. If the practice is now deemed unacceptable, then those who laid its foundation should be the first to answer for it.
This attempt to single out Governor Sule and Aliyu Bello is a calculated distraction. It is designed to mislead party members and stir unnecessary tension under the guise of protecting democracy. One cannot condemn today a process that was endorsed and exploited yesterday.
If we are to be honest with ourselves, then we must begin by criticizing those who initiated the practice, not just its current operators. Anything less is pure deception.
Enough of the double standards. Enough of the political grandstanding. Those who truly care about democracy must confront the truth, not distort it.