The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Enugu State, under the leadership of Barr Ugochukwu Agballah, has officially announced the suspension of 20 party members following a recent clash within the party ranks.
This announcement comes just days after a rival faction of the APC declared the suspension of Agballah and several other party officials. In response, the Agballah-led faction convened a stakeholders’ meeting at the party’s secretariat, during which they decided to suspend all individuals involved in the previous suspension.
The meeting featured prominent attendees including Chief Emma Eneukwu, the Deputy National Chairman of the Party for the South, Chief Uche Nnaji, Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, and former Senator Chukwuka Utazi, alongside Agballah himself.
Eneukwu, representing the National Chairman of the Party, Abdullahi Ganduje, reaffirmed Agballah’s position as the rightful chairman of the Enugu APC. He clarified that the national secretariat was unaware of any removal of Agballah, stating that the earlier suspension did not adhere to proper procedures.
In a statement read by Senator Utazi, the party disclosed the names of those suspended, which included Uche Egbonwonu, Chibuike Onoduagu, and others totaling 20 members, including various youth leaders and secretaries from different zones.
The communique expressed disapproval of the “gross indiscipline” displayed by some party members who met in a hotel to announce Agballah’s suspension without following the party’s Constitution. The stakeholders accused these individuals of forging signatures to falsely present a larger consensus.
“More than 35 individuals whose signatures were forged have distanced themselves from this illegality,” the statement asserted. It further criticized the lack of due process, as no formal meeting, petitions, or notifications to national levels had occurred before the unauthorized suspension announcement.
The stakeholders accepted the Disciplinary Committee’s recommendations to suspend the individuals involved, noting that they had been invited for clarification but failed to attend. The party has now established an eight-member committee to review cases of those previously suspended who wish to return.
The Enugu APC stakeholders expressed gratitude to the Igbo community for abstaining from recent protests against President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s government, reaffirming their confidence in his Renewed Hope Agenda. They also declared readiness to participate in the upcoming Enugu State Local Government Council Elections.
It’s worth noting that a High Court in Enugu has also issued a ruling barring Agballah and others from presenting themselves as party officials.
