The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has raised the alarm over alleged reports that civil servants across the country are being coerced into registering with the All Progressives Congress (APC) under its ongoing e-registration exercise.
In a statement, the ADC's National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, described the alleged practice as economic coercion and forced membership, warning that compelling public servants to join a political party violates their constitutional right to freedom of association and undermines the neutrality of the civil service.
But in a swift reaction, the APC Director of Information, Bala Ibrahim, described the allegation as "baseless".
Abdullahi said that any party register filled through coercion amounted to what he described as a "paper tiger," noting that a digital database does not translate into genuine political support.
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"Databases do not vote; citizens do. Inflated numbers achieved through intimidation may serve propaganda purposes, but they cannot disguise the growing alienation of Nigerians from a government that has failed to deliver economic relief," he said.
The party called on relevant authorities, including the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), civil society organisations, labour unions and the international community, to take note of what it described as an apparent state-enabled abuse of power and a potential violation of data privacy and human rights.
Reacting in a telephone interview last night, the APC information director said, "This accusation is baseless. It is baseless in the sense that we have made it very clear times without number. The National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Barrister Felix Morka, had responded to this allegation or accusation that nobody is being coerced or forced. No civil servant is asked to register. After all, registration of belonging to a political party is civic responsibility to which there is no force of being a member of any political party. It is not a compulsory assignment and there are people whose schedule of duty does not permit them to belong to any political party? So, how can you force them?
"When you say civil servants are being forced to register, for what reason? Why should they register? You cannot be a civil servant and be a card-carrying member of any political party because you cannot contest. You cannot benefit from what a political party is doing other than which is beneficial to everyone that is a citizen of the country. No special preference is given to any civil servant. So, why should civil servant want to belong to something that does not give them any advantage over other people?"
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