Cross River LG Polls: Condemnation As APC Demands N1.5m For Tax Clearance

Stakeholders in the Cross River State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have condemned and kicked against the demand by the party for prospective chairmanship and councillor candidates for the upcoming local government election to pay N1.5m for tax clearance.

THE WHISTLER reports that the Cross River State Independent Electoral Commission (CROSIEC) had also slammed the sum of N5m on chairmanship candidates and N1m for councillor candidates before they could collect expression of interest forms.

Following condemnation that followed that heavy fee, the State Governor, Senator Bassey Otu slashed it to N1m and N200,000, respectively.

Just when stakeholders in the party were still coming to terms with the heavy fee, the party slammed N1.5m in the candidates for tax clearance.

Angered by the fee, former Chairman of the Special Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property, Okoi Obono-Obla, who spoke on behalf of party elders, condemned the fee, saying it’s an attempt to deny credible and qualified aspirants the opportunity in order to sell the positions to willing stooges.

Obono-Obla said, “We cried over exorbitant fees which CROSEIC wanted candidates to pay, and the Governor intervened.

“Now APC is asking aspirants to pay astronomical sums to get tax Clearance Certificates in the region of N1.5 million.

“This is outrageous, wicked and a cruel attempt to rig the APC nomination process. Is APC now a tax collection agency?”

Obono-Obla said, “This is another effort by a supposedly progressive party to disenfranchise aspirants, and create an easy passage for the rich and acolytes of political godfathers.”