By CHARLES IWUOHA

A faction of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Enugu State has played down the Certificate of Return given to Ugochukwu Agballah by the national leadership of the party.

Agballah was on Monday in Abuja presented with the certificate by the APC national leadership, ending weeks of speculations.

But reacting in Enugu on Tuesday, another faction of the party led by Comrade Adolphus Ude said the presentation of the Certificate of Return to Agballah was an exercise in futility.

Apart from Ude, one of the lawyers handling a series of litigations by members of the party, Barr. Chukwudi Igwe, also declared that only the court would determine the authentic leadership of the party in Enugu State.

Ude told journalists at a press briefing that “we are not perturbed; we heard the news but we are not losing sleep over it because it is a jamboree; anybody can parade a paper or whatever you call it.

“The fact remains that Ugo Agballah is not even a member of our party and this is a subject of litigation before an FCT High Court. He is not even a member of our party. Anyone who is dealing with him is wasting his time because the action will not last, it won’t survive judicial review.”

He added that “the National Secretary is alone on this; you can see that the National Chairman was not a party to that charade; so, we are urging our members not to lose sleep at all. Party is the people, party is not paper; let’s see what happens after the national convention.

“APC Enugu State is not a rehabilitation centre; a landlord can never be a tenant in his own house,” Ude added.

Similarly, Barr. Igwe described the latest development as a ruse.

He told the newsmen that “there is no cause for alarm; there are a plethora of court cases pending, questioning the membership of Ugo Agballah in the party, as well as the validity of the purported congress that brought him in as the chairman of the party.

“We are not perturbed that a certificate of return has been handed over to him; there is no indication that the national chairman approved the delivery or hand over of the purported certificate of return to Ugochukwu Agballah.

“We have a suit pending, which is questioning the said congress, which was held at a private property, as against the congress regulation of our party.

“Those that attended the congress that produced Ugo Agballah were not members of our party; the only congress which the party can rely on is the congress that produced Comrade A. C. Ude as the chairman of the party.

“I also want you to note that no State chairman has been sworn-in as the chairman of the party; we are confident that Ugo Agballah will not be sworn-in. The germane question is whether he is a member of the party.”

News Express learnt that a member of the party, Mr Uduji Kingsley is before a Federal High Court in the FCT, Abuja, seeking an order of the court to stop Agballah from parading himself as the chairman of the party in Enugu State.

Other defendants in the suit are Dr. Ben Nwoye, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The plaintiff is arguing that the purported emergence of Agballah is in total contravention of Section 85(3) of the Electoral Act as Amended and the Constitution of the APC.

Uduji equally wants the court to stop Agballah from parading himself as a fully registered member of the APC pending the determination of the substantive suit.

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