By HAMZA SULEIMAN

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Borno has reduced its nomination forms fee for women and Physically Challenged Persons willing to participate in the Dec. 13 local government elections.

Alhaji Bello Ayuba, the APC state Chairman, made this known at a news conference on Friday in Maiduguri.

Ayuba announced that the party had fixed Councillorship forms for women and physically challenged aspirants at N250,000 and Chairmanship forms at N1 million, representing a 50 per cent reduction from the standard fees.

The chairman said that standard fees remained N500,000 for councillorship and N2 million for chairmanship.

Ayuba said that the fee adjustment was made after consultations with other party members in Katsina and Lagos states.

He said that the move was aimed at ensuring inclusivity and giving women and persons with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate in the elections.

He assured of the party’s commitment to conducting free, fair and transparent primaries with aspirants given equal opportunity to contest.

“Whosoever is willing to contest for chairmanship or councilorship, as long as they are members of the party, the door is open to all,” Ayuba said.

The APC has also concluded the stage of forms process and will soon commence the screening of the aspirants for the 27 local government chairmanship and 320 ward councilorship positions.

“Even in cases where there is only one aspirant in a local government or ward, affirmation exercises will be conducted to ensure acceptance by party structures.

“Following screening and affirmation, the party will forward the list of approved candidates to the Borno State Independent Electoral Commission (BORSEC) to enable them secure forms and prepare for the main elections.

“Larger committees will also be constituted at various levels across all Local Government Areas to ensure transparency and adherence to party guidelines,” he said.

Ayuba urged party members to remain peaceful during the electoral process, saying APC was determined to uphold democratic principles and deliver credible elections across the state. (NAN)