The crisis rocking the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) has shifted from Imo and Anambra States to Ebonyi State where members of the party have threatened to leave the party on the account of the inability to present a governorship candidate for the 2019 elections.
The party faithful and leaders in all the local government areas of the state have expressed willingness to follow their preferred candidates to another party if the National Chairman of the party, Chief Victor Oye fails to intervene. Speaking to the Director General of Igbo Mandate Congress, IMC, Rev Obinna Akukwe in Abuja, some leaders of the party in Ebonyi State claimed that they came to discuss with the leadership of another party in preparation for moving out en-masse.
The state executives of the party on the 24st of September had in a letter of notification to INEC, National Chairman and National Secretary of the party, notified them of the impeachment of the State Chairman Mr Ricky Okoro-Uka on allegations of working for the opposition, anti-party activities , selling of membership card for N5000 naira and converting the state apparatus to a family affair. The notice of removal was signed by members of the state exco including Mr Emmanuel Edegri (Deputy Chairman) Aja Ogbonnaya (Secretary), Mrs Amata Ebebe (Women Leader), Anyigor Malachy ( Youth Leader) Otobo Jeremiah (Abakaliki LGA Chairman), Ogbonnaya Sunday Nweke (Afikpo LGA Chairman) among others while Chief Sunday Nwode was elected as the new Chairman.
The grouse of the party members in Ebonyi State was that their preferred candidate, a popular youth leader, Rev Paschal Gold Nwaigwe, who had spent considerable funds in reorganizing the party apparatus in Ebonyi State in preparation to challenge Governor Dave Umahi, was frustrated out of the party, on the alleged influence of the incumbent They claimed that APGA was among the parties the Governor allegedly bought over with N2million naira each in the state in the controversial meeting of all parties with Gov Umahi and that the said governor is manipulating the party in Ebonui State with the connivance of the national leadership.
The aggrieved party members told Igbo Mandate Congress IMC that Rev Paschal Gold Nwaigwe had already spent funds millions of naira in mobilizing grass root to support APGA . Rev Nwaigwe had earlier contested for the governorship of the state in 2015 under the platform of African Democratic Congress, ADC, where he placed sixth out of fifteen candidates.. The APGA faithful believe that the National leadership of the party should have given the ticket to the popular youth leader.
Igbo Mandate Congress IMC learnt that a patron of APGA and former governor of Anambra State, Dr Chukwuemeka Ezeife had intervened in the Ebonyi APGA crisis by informing the National Chairman in a letter that’ it is very unfortunate that APGA has no candidate in a core Igbo State like Ebonyi” and implored the former to give the vacant ticket to Rev Nwaigwe
A National Officer of APGA told Igbo Mandate Congress that Rev Nwaigwe refused to pay the national body the N2million naira nomination form in full and therefore is not fit to fly the ticket of the party,
The development made some aspirants who earlier wanted to contest on the platform of APGA in the state to drop the party for other parties s to the extent that only five aspirants are contesting for the House of Assembly from the party while none indicated interest in either the Senate or House of Representatives.
APGA had got crisis in Imo State where the aspirants including the immediate governor of the state, Dr. Ikedi Ohakim, Chairman of ABC Transport Plc, Mr Frank Nneji, Hon Uche Onyeagocha, Chief Charles Onyeagboka, Dr Sam Amadi, Chief Bright Nwanne.
Hon Daniel Kanu, Hon Nick Opara-Ndudu, Chief Okey Eze, Chief Humphrey Anumudu and Mr Stanley Amuchie, an astute banker who just resigned as group general manager, Zenith Bank Plc, cast a vote of no confidence on the National Chairman Chief Victor Oye , for conducting a kangaroo primary which trumped up Ifeanyi Ararume, who decamped from the ruling APC to APGA two weeks earlier.
In Anambra State, APGA had been criticized for asking Chief Ifeanyi Uba and Senator Ukachukwu to stand down for Bianca Ojukwu, widow of Chief Emeka Ojukwu, erstwhile Biafran leader. While Chief Ifeanyi Uba moved to another party in frustration, Senator Nicholas Ukachukwu ignored the party and contested for the primaries and defeated Ojukwu’s widow.
The crisis in Anambra is not yet resolved. Bianca Ojukwu wrote off the recent events in APGA as unfortunate. According to Bianca “As a member of this party’s board of trustees, I am deeply concerned that mercenaries would appear to have hijacked the operations of our party machinery. APGA is today facing an existential threat and the overall image of our party is in tatters.
Meanwhile Ohanaeze Ndigbo in Abuja has expressed worry at the crisis in APGA. For two consecutive times, the Imeobi have described the happenings at imo, Anambra and Ebonyi States as unfortunate and a disgrace to the Igbo race.
