 Good morning to you. This is the Breakfast and Plus TV Africa. We apologise for Star 10 behind schedule. It was occasioned by Admiral Parr Surge. My name is Justin Academia. And I am Messi Bopo. On the show today a whole lot has happened but let's just take a look at what happened. As of all creativity and innovation day is celebrated today. We are looking at the importance of creativity and innovation in problem solving at different level of the Nigerian polity. Also on the breakfast President Mohammed Buhari at the Council of State Meeting granted pardons on the the peregrative of Messi to Joshua Darie of Plateau State and Jolli Nyema of Tarabah State both serving geo terms for misappropriation of funds and 157 other inmates who have been granted this pardon. Is this a retirement from the fight against corruption or political move? And don't forget we also will be looking through today's newspapers and analysing the biggest stories of the day. Once again thanks for staying with us on the Breakfast and Plus TV Africa. Just yesterday the APC you know was in the news and they have come out to announce the forms for an expression of interest and the nomination forms that it has got a whole lot of people talking specifically the presidential nomination form has been pegged at 100 million Naira. Let me just give you a bit of a background. Now the ruling all progressives Congress APC fixed its presidential nomination and expression of interest forms at 100 million Naira. The expression of interest form for the presidential aspirant is expected to go for 30 million Naira while the nomination form is pegged at 70 million Naira. These however contrast the 40 million Naira that the main opposition that's the people's democratic party pegged their own. It is charging its presidential aspirant comprising that 5 million Naira for nomination forms and 5 million Naira for expression of interest. This was actually announced by their spokesperson Felix Morka. So mercy that has actually generated a whole lot of generation you know from Nigerians. 100 million Naira you know for expression of interest and the nomination form you know for the presidency. So it's quite a I mean I would not say unfortunate you might just always be quite unfortunate but it's really interesting to note that in 2014 the president had lamented the exorbitant to 27.5 million Naira at the time that was in you of course you know that the president became president in 2015 he won the 2015 election but of course in 2014 then he wasn't the president. He lamented the fact that it was exorbitant 27.5 million Naira the expression of interest and nomination form. That time he talked about it you know the fact that he had to acquire it with bank loans. Now just recently the president also talked about he the process that brought him was a fair and credible system and so he's going to ensure that that happens in 2023 so Nigerians should be rest assured but at the party level which is very fundamental to the democratic process what is going on. So you have the forms put at this price 100 million Naira that's a lot or I really don't understand what happened. So way back in 2014 27.5 million was so much money and the president lamented that he had to take back and now it's not very exorbitant so but it just brings us back to the argument that's been going on in the space. It's no longer history that this has become very fundamental the money politics or the money back politics that we practice it is very critical to the electoral process and it constantly frustrates and flaws the entire democratic process because this is where it starts from imagine you having to take a loan of a hundred million Naira. You want to get to return. So it has now become business elections have now become business and investment and so mostly you would be very paid. You must get returns somehow. Your focus would be how to take back all of this money that you have invested but this should not be the case. A lot of people as much as the argument has been put out and saying oh there's been some discount that's been given to those between the ages of about 25 to 40 young people and then women those with disabilities all of those consideration but you look at this at this time considering the economic situation that the country is faced with it is really really very interesting to know that the APC and including the PD they're not left out so you still talk about 40 million. We constantly make this and so is this pattern supposed to discourage persons from contesting or are these political parties not meant for the reach? What is going on? What sort of principle? How did we even get to this point? What is the rationale being you know putting this forms sort of price tag and so who can afford what exactly is going on? We cannot say we want to strengthen our democratic process without paying attention you know to the activities or to the parties I mean political parties which I would always say is a vehicle to the entire process. So if we're not getting it right at that level a political party level how do we not get it right at the bigger level because that's what will happen. It's going to be a trickle down effect. If it's placed so highly you know those who have genuine interest the young people who may have one or two things to contribute to the nation's polity you know they'll see that as a drawback because even if they want to contest for governorship which will expect that you know 50 million they would like you know start thinking of how to get about 50 million and somehow it would be a discouragement. It will even disenfranchise that because they cannot really get under the race because of just money and I don't think that's actually a good thing that we are doing in deepening democracy in Nigeria but we'll not stay much on that. We'll take a quick break now and when we come back very quickly we'll go straight to off the press in a moment to join us again.