By IFEOMA AKA

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Enugu has again suspended its state chairman, Chief Ugochukwu Agballah and other executive members over alleged acts of abuse of offices.

This was disclosed in a press briefing by the State Publicity Secretary, Chief Michael Ezeanyanwu, and other State Executive Committee of the party in Enugu on Saturday.

Ezeanyanwu said that the members of the state executive committee, Enugu State had passed vote of no confidence following their anti-party activities.

“We, the members of the State Executive Committee of the All Progressives Congress, Enugu State do hereby pass a vote of no confidence on Chief Ugochukwu Agballah (state Chairman), Chief Augustine Alumonah (State Deputy Chairman).

“Others are Mr Jude Aniogbo (State Treasurer) and Mr Emeka Eze (State Organizing Secretary) and they are hereby suspended from the party.

“Our decision is predicated on series of acts of abuse of offices, usurpation of powers, creation of factional executives, unconstitutional removal of party executives.

“Others include instigation of crisis in party in some local government etc. committed by the named officers against the party,” he said.

According to Ezeanyanwu, Since the confirmation of Agballah as the state chairman of the party, he has been running the affairs of the party as if it’s his personal business without any regards to the party’s Constitution.

He said that the suspended chairman exercised the power of his office as the chairman of the party in the state arbitrarily and for his personal consideration, including hijacking and embezzling of the money meant for the party.

He added that the most recent of the embezzlement against the party and her members occurred on how he handled the money provided for logistics for Enugu State APC attendees of the Southeast Stakeholders meetings held in Owerri and Ebonyi State respectively.

According to him, the named suspended officers have sidelined the members of the state executive committee of the party and arbitrarily exercised the power of the organ.

“They went to the extent of unduly interfering with the administration of the party at the local government.

“Could you imagine that the State Chairman and State treasurer connived with the bank officials, and they allowed them to access the party’s account without meeting the requisite constitutional requirement of the chairman and any two other signatories to sign financial instrument.

“The state chairman and treasurer also use their personal account to receive money meant for the party to avoid traces.

“Again, the state chairman, Deputy state chairman and the state organizing secretary had also engaged in instigation of crisis and factionalisation of the party in some local governments and wards,” he added.

Ezeanyanwu alleged that the state chairman through his deputy and the organising secretary, instigated and created factional ward executives in Aku Ward 3 in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Areas and Abbi Ward in Uzo-Uwani Local Government Areas without the knowledge and consent of the SWC.

“Recently, in July, the state chairman and state organising secretary facilitated and attended meetings with local government deputy chairman of Enugu South, other local government officers and some ward chairman at the Signature Hotel where he instigated them to remove the local government party chairman by whatever means.

“He tried to create parallel executives in Ezeagu, Udi and Awgu Local Government Areas, which has thrown the party into chaos.

“His misconduct and how he handles Enugu state party activities made Enugu state to have the worst result in the just concluded general election,” the chairman alleged.

“All these anti party activities of these enemies of the party in the name of party executives, culminated into the colossal and abysmal performance of the party in the state at the last general elections despite the effort of our governorship candidate and we do not want a repeat of it.

“On this premise, the aforementioned persons are hereby suspended with immediate effect.

Efforts to reach the embattled chairman, Agballah, failed as his phone was switched off but the state treasurer, Mr. Jude Aniogbo declined comment saying that they would not join issues with the State Working Committee.

“We will not join issues with the SWC that claimed to have suspended us as we are too busy to do that,” Aniogbo said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that in March, some stakeholders of the party had passed a vote of no confidence on Agballah over his alleged high-handed leadership.

The stakeholders led by an APC stalwart, Mrs Ginika Tor, expressed dismay that Agballah had destroyed the party structure in the state through unconstitutional suspension of its founding fathers.

Those suspended by Agballah were former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, former Enugu State Governor, Sullivan Chime, ex State Chairman, Ben Nwoye and former Director General of the Voice of Nigeria, Odita Okechukwu. (NAN)

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