By Cajetan Mmuta
The Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Anambra State, Barrister Chukwuma Agupugo, has stressed the need for the party Chairman, National Caretaker and Extra-Ordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC), Governor Mai-Mala Buni, to reconcile Senator Chris Ngige, Senator Andy Uba and Chief George Moghalu.
Agupugo said this had become imperative because of the approach of the February 26 national convention of the party.
Others to be reconciled include Senator Stella Oduah, Senator Margret Okadigbo, Senator Joy Emodi, Engr. Bath Nwibe, the eleven 2021 governorship aspirants of the party and all other aggrieved members.
He said the exercise would help to position the party ahead of the 2023 general elections.
It would be recalled that the Anambra State chapter of the party has been engulfed in a leadership crisis involving the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige and the immediate past governorship candidate of the party in the November 6, 2021 governorship election, Senator Andy Uba, over who controls the affairs of the party in the state.
But Agupugo pointed out that if the aggrieved factions are not reconciled as soon as possible, the Anambra Chapter of the APC would not participate in the February 26 convention.
Agupugo told newsmen on Monday in Awka the state capital while reviewing the concluded State Congress that produced Chief Basil Ejidike as the new Chairman of the party in the state through a voice vote, that those who gathered and conducted the purported congress did so at their own risk.
He said the state chapter was yet to conduct its congress.
According to him, “I am not surprised to hear that some people conducted a purported state congress on Sunday because there has been this desperation by some individuals in the party to concoct what seems like congress.”
“There was no congress in the party on Sunday. There were reasons for that. There is a subsisting order and ruling by the Court of Appeal filed by Barr Emeka Ibe by the judgement secured by Onyekwere Uzochukwu. That order emanated that the Court of Appeal and directed that the status quo should be maintained where the former chairman Emeka Ibe was returned as the state chairman of the party.”
“That notwithstanding, the order, I believe, was duly served on us and to the national secretariat of the party. I particularly wrote a memo to the national secretariat requesting their directives and intervention to that effect and even up till now, no reply has come back to the party in the state.”
“Consequent upon that, I do not believe that the party would be blind to that judgement. Of course, you know that no matter how big or small a court order is, it is meant to be obeyed.
Agupugo explained that “We also received a court order by some people, about 18 local government chairmen who went to court asking the court to grant them relief on the fact that their tenure had not elapsed, and as such, no congresses should be held in Anambra.”
“Only on the 25th, we get information that the people who went to court secured an order and the next day, we received the order, which was also served on the national secretariat.”
“I think the next day, we heard that the purported ward congresses were to go on, and if anybody was to pay a blind eye and deaf ears to this, that person must be a serial court offender, and what is imminent is that if Anambra produces a list for the national convention, that convention may be null and void because people will go to court.
We want discussion and dialogue to resolve things. If we do not resolve this and we go to the national convention with delegates outside the directive of the court, anything outside it is an invitation to a nullification of the convention. People will lay hands on it.
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“There are two subsisting orders which must be obeyed. The court remains the last hope of the common man.”
“I am advising the National Secretariat to get in touch with the stakeholders and ensure cohesion through an invitation to a roundtable discussion to end the rift between Anambra APC leaders.”
“As for those said to be a committee to monitor the congress, anyone can claim to be anything. We even heard that INEC was not there and you know they have to be there to observe. The right things were not done, and you know they did not even sell forms. You can not conduct congresses secretly, people should be allowed to participate.
“The Congress did not conform with the APC guidelines. It is the same steps they took that made the contention about APC not having a candidate for the election, so they must do the right thing.”
Agupugo however appealed to members to stop libellous social media attacks against its leaders and members for sake of peace and unity.
