Maxwell Opara has condemned the rising cost of political participation in Nigeria, warning that expensive nomination forms and campaign requirements are weakening democratic inclusion and shutting out qualified citizens from elective office.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE News on Tuesday, Opara said the estimated ₦150 million cost of running for the Senate, particularly through nomination and expression of interest fees, has made political office inaccessible to ordinary Nigerians.
“It’s a rather unfortunate reality we’ve found ourselves in,” he said, “where the people that are supposed to represent us have decided to destroy democracy itself by monetizing our party politics.”
He argued that the current structure of election financing and party nomination fees has turned politics into an exclusive space for the wealthy and politically connected.
“All they are trying to achieve is to ensure that a common man who is qualified to lead cannot come in,” Opara said, adding that this has resulted in “the kind of characters we see in the National Assembly.”
According to him, the system violates the principle of equal access to political participation and contradicts the spirit of reforms like the “Not Too Young To Run” law.
“You are asking a corps member to get ₦10 million just to buy a form,” he said. “Then after that, he still has to raise money for campaign. It is quite unfortunate and it should be condemned.”
Opara also faulted provisions of the Electoral Act that set high campaign spending limits, describing them as indirect encouragement of corruption and political monetisation.
He said political parties have effectively created a system where only individuals with access to large financial resources or godfather backing can secure tickets to contest elections.
“What are they trying to achieve?” he asked. “A political party is not Father Christmas. After they take over power, they try to recover the money.”
The legal practitioner stressed that many qualified Nigerians, including young professionals and civil servants, are excluded at the entry level due to unaffordable nomination fees.
He further warned that successful candidates often enter office already financially indebted to sponsors, which compromises governance and accountability.
“You must first settle the person before you talk about governance,” he said. “And before you know it, four years is already gone.”
Opara called for urgent reforms to drastically reduce nomination fees across all political parties, arguing that this would promote competition and strengthen internal democracy.
“If it is 100,000 or 200,000 Naira, we will have healthy competition,” he said. “Politics is all about competition.”
He also criticised what he described as the failure of electoral reform bills to address the root problem, saying the National Assembly has shown resistance to meaningful change due to self-interest.
“What we have is a rubber-stamp National Assembly,” Opara said. “They are there to think about what will benefit them.”
He concluded that unless nomination costs are significantly reduced, Nigeria risks continued exclusion of credible leaders and a deepening democratic imbalance.
By Ojo Triumph
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