Despite last Sunday’s declaration by the All Progressive Congress, APC, in Abia State, that is set to win the 2019 general elections in the state, crisis has torn apart the Isiala Ngwa South local government area chapter of the party following the sack of the chairman of the APC in the area, Mr. Ezekiel Nwogwugwu, over alleged misconducts.
It was gathered that stakeholders of the party in the council, had through a communiqué on 10th March, 2017, passed a vote of no confidence on Nwogwugwu, accusing him of running the APC as a personal business and trying to sell the party to a moneybag in the area. The stakeholders allegedly backed a former Senator for Abia Central, Chief Bob Nwannunnu, further sacked Nwogwugwu and replaced him with a 16 member exco led by Onyenma Nwamara.
A planned inauguration of the party secretariat at the council headquarters, Omoba, by the stakeholders of the party led by the zonal secretary of the APC, Abia Central, Chief Onyenmuru Sample Aja; zonal Organizing secretary, Abia Central, Oba Darlington and a former chairman of the council, Engr. Uzoma Uwa, was aborted by the state chapter of the party who allegedly petitioned security agents.
In a communiqué which was signed by zonal and local government officers and ward chairmen of the APC, some of the allegation against Nwogwugwu include suspending ward chairmen without due process, misappropriating money meant for the party during the 2015 general elections, failure to rent an office for the party despite receiving money, as well as congratulating the PDP candidate who emerged winner at the December 21Abia council polls.
Addressing members of the party at its new office at the local government headquarters at Omoba, Onyenmuru Sample Aja, Darlington Oba and Engr. Uzoma Uwa, flanked by LGA and ward executives of the party, maintained that the sack of the party chairman was in line with the APC Constitution, Article 21, Section D, subsection VI, as amended.
They explained that the stakeholders of the party are united in their rejection of Nwogwugwu as the party chairman and has contributed over a million Naira to rent a befitting secretariat, claiming that the APC in the area has never had a secretariat as Nwogwugwu and his cohorts allegedly embezzled the funds meant for the purpose.
They also accused the state chapter of the party led by Mr. Donatus Nwankpa of bias and called for the replacement of the secretary of the six man peace committee, Menyechi Onuoha, describing him as an interested party in the matter.
Reacting to the crisis in the area, State chairman of the APC, Donatus Nwankpa, said the party has set up a six man committee to look into the matter, adding that he petitioned the security agencies to stop the inauguration of the party secretariat to avert breach of peace, as the Nwogwugwu faction was also set to inaugurate their secretariat, same day.
