Intra-Party Rivalry in the Build-up to 2023 General Election: A case of 2022 All Progressive Congress (APC) Presidential Primary Election

Abstract

Democracy as a form of government towers above all other systems of government in the modern world. Political parties are the veritable platforms in which leaders are recruited to pilot the affairs of a state. In party politics, intra-party rivalry thrives on absence of internal democracy which ultimately leads to a decline in democratic process and governance. In Nigeria political parties, consequent upon primary elections there are always witness serious intra-party dissents and these have grave challenges to democratic consolidation and sustainable development. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to look at intra-party rivalry in the build-up to 2023 general elections with a specific focus on the 2022 All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary election. The justification was to identify the factors responsible for intra-party rivalry in APC and the challenges it would have on the 2023 general election. The study relied on both primary and secondary data. The primary data were sourced through the administration of questionnaire for a total of 195 respondents and 124 responded successfully. The secondary data were information obtained from books, journals, newspapers, magazine and on-line materials. The simple procedure used was simple random sampling and the rationale was to ensure that every member has equal chance of being selected. The techniques of data analysis were simple percentage method. The major findings showed that intra-party rivalry had been in APC since inception; and that it had the tendency to negatively affect the democratic consolidation and sustainable political development as the nation looked towards 2023 general election. The study concluded that the general view on intra-party rivalry had the capacity to derail democratic process in the country. The study made the following recommendations among others: Parties members must ensure that they confine themselves to Party Constitution, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and other relevant extant laws including electoral guidelines. Actors and members of political parties should be treated equally and fairly by a level playing field during primary election. The conduct of primary election should be free, fair and credible in order to produce a well acceptable candidate. Political parties should avoid imposition of candidates so as to avoid internal rivalry. Power rotation between the North and South should be entrenched in APC Constitution with consideration for each geopolitical zone for the sake of justice, fairness and equity. There should be an internal mechanism for prompt identification of rivalry that might lead to conflicts for the purpose of resolving them promptly. Members of ruling party in governance should not design policies/regulations that would have negative impact on democratic consolidation and sustainable development in Nigeria