A staunch member of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara state, Engineer Opeyemi Olabanji has advised leaders of the party in the state to entrench value reward system to deserving members of the party.
Olabanji who spoke with reporters yesterday in Ilorin the state capital lamented the acclaimed long term neglect of some party members who had in the past worked assiduously for the progress of the party in the murky water of Kwaran politics.
According to him, many members of the party are working unnoticed at the grass roots churning out great results each time the party is participating in elections against other political parties.
“Let’s look at this scenario, The government at the National level is at present in the eye of the storm because it is making fundamental reforms to move the nation forward and every action has its own consequences.But then, the immediate past leadership of the APC alleged that the party has a membership population of about 45 million; even though the National Secretary of the party contravened the figure saying it was on a higher side.
“What is sure however is that, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu won the election with about 10 million votes. Out of the 10 million, let’s assume 5 million came from party members, it means each member only needs to be an advocate of government policies to less than a hundred citizens.
“But why are our members not convincing Nigerians on the need to be patient and endure a bit more, as after the reforms, pleasant moments will return to the country? They refused to take off undue pressure from the public over governmental reform policies. It is deliberate and due to the absence of the reward system.”
Olabanji alluded to the Asian Tiger countries especially, China with their version of Democracy that due to the viable reward system in them, the members of the party are allegedly the ones spreading the ideologies and programs of their parties.
The APC leader added, “if a member of a political party is not dedicated to the party, you can’t trust him that he will be dedicated to the nation. Don’t forget also that a ruling political party is liable to the people. Anyone who doesn’t believe in the party can’t stand in for the party.
“We that had for long been putting up our faces for the party have not been recognized. What we see is that after electoral victories, some people will just come around and decide on who get what. Any organization that doesn’t recognize the need for reward can’t go far. Let individuals be rewarded based on their performances. They are not to be ignored.”
He said his proposition is not alien even to the oldest democracy the American system, from which many developing democracies had evolved. Besides, he warned that where rewards are ignored after due diligence and hard labour had been exerted by members with positive results, such could wane the level of loyalty among them in future endeavours.
The political stalwart, while reacting to the results of the last Local Government Areas (LGAs) elections across the existing 16 councils of Kwara, noted that the 100 per cent results in favour of the ruling APC government in the polls showed the commitment of members of the party to its visions and programs.
Speaking on the feasible types of reward system he said that the Governor could reward loyal and results oriented supporters with cabinet positions or other high-ranking roles such as board and committee chairmanships.
He noted that, businesses that support politicians or parties could receive government patronages via contracts or favourable treatment just as companies or individuals could receive tax breaks or credits for supporting specific policies of the ruling party.
For Olabanji , governments could provide subsidies to industries or sectors that support their agendas and give public recognitions to citizens who contribute to successful democratic processes.
He opined that, those who have great influence on their communities shaping local policies or initiatives could be provided with valuable connections and networking opportunities.
He added that loyal supporters could be rewarded with lifetime judicial appointments just as organizations or institutions that support government initiatives could receive federal grants.
He averred that politicians and activists could receive media coverage thereby amplifying their messages.
Olabanji believed that a precursor to ensuring a healthy democracy, should be the need to address these challenges and promote transparency, accountability, and inclusivity in the reward system of the APC as a ruling political party in Nigeria.