A member of the House of Representatives from Benue State, Ojotu Ojema, has advised his constituents to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), claiming that access to jobs, scholarships, and other opportunities may depend on full party membership.
Newsonspot reports that while speaking at an event organised by the National Association of Agatu Students, the lawmaker urged Nigerians to obtain an APC membership card and link their National Identification Number (NIN) to prove their affiliation with the party.
According to him, individuals who are not registered members of the APC risk missing out on admission opportunities, career prospects, and other life-changing benefits.
“If you are not in APC and job opportunities come, nobody may consider you if your NIN is not registered with APC. You may lose the opportunity. Don’t let anybody deceive you. Follow APC,” Mr Ojema said.
He further claimed that the APC, as the party that produced President Bola Tinubu, wields strong influence across political and non-political sectors, making party membership important for accessing opportunities.
Mr Ojema also encouraged his constituents to register as party members, stressing that the APC’s dominance across many states and the Federal Capital Territory gives it significant reach.
He noted that several politicians have defected from other parties to the APC, suggesting that the prospects of contracts and other benefits influenced their decision to switch allegiance.
The lawmaker’s statement has sparked angry reactions from Nigerians who believe the nation is a multi-party state and deem it unfair to limit the nation’s resources to members of the ruling party alone.
Netizens like Nwafor Austine labelled Mr Ojetu’s remark an anti-Christ and endtime move, referencing the book of Revelation in the Bible, which speaks about the 666 mark and how people could only access government benefits after receiving it.
“I think APC is the 666 they were teaching us when we were little,” Mr Austine wrote on X. “Get registered or lose ur job, gradually it’ll spread to get registered, or you can’t purchase anything in the market.”
X user Chris Aspirewealth wrote in a post,
“So being a Nigerian citizen is no longer enough? You now need an APC card to breathe?” citing, “Section 42 of the Constitution clearly prohibits discrimination, yet a lawmaker is boldly telling students that ‘jobs and admissions’ are for party members only.
”We’ve moved from ‘Government of the people’ to ‘Government of the APC, by the APC, for the APC.’ This is a new low.”
User Pros4luv wrote,
“This tyrannical declaration from the APC Benue rep member reeks of fascism and division; we want a Nigeria where opportunities are based on merit, not party loyalty! APC is synonymous to retrogression.”
