From Geoffrey Anyanwu, Enugu
A former military governor of Gombe State and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Enugu State, Group Capt Joe Orji (retd), has that the new state Chairman of the party, Chief Ugochukwu Agballah, was planted by his former party the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to destroy APC in the state.
He described the recent pronouncement by the Agballah-led state executive of the party to the effect that he, the former state chairman, Dr Ben Nwoye, and some others have been sacked from the party, as a charade, stressing that Agballah was merely acting the scripts of PDP in the state “where he originally belongs.”
Orji who was reacting to his alleged sack from the party told newsmen that Agballah lacks the merit to fire or sack members of the party because according to him, “he is not a truly registered member of APC in Enugu State.”
The Agballah-led executive had while announcing Orji’s sack accused him of still parading suites in the Court of law against the party, contrary to directives from the APC party headquarters that all matters in court should be withdrawn for amicable out of court settlement.
But Orji in his reaction said, “It is no longer news that Chief Ugochukwu Agballah was reported to have purportedly expelled some pillars of the APC in Enugu State on the account of various unfounded allegations. By this action, Chief Agballah is merely perfecting the clandestine assignment he entered with the opposition PDP against the APC which is targeted at ensuring that the APC is further disintegrated and unable to win any election in the state come 2023.
“You will recall that the said Agballah approached the party secretariat in Enugu State sometime at the end of July 2021, four months after the close of the membership registration of the party, indicating his interest in becoming a member of the party. You will also recall that the then Party Chairman, Dr Ben Nwoye categorically reminded Chief Agballah that the party has closed its membership registration and that he can only become a full member of the party when the ban on registration is further lifted in line with the APC constitution.
“It was shocking to all when the said Agballah procured a forged party membership registration slip purporting to have registered in the party in February 2021. The Police are presently investigating the case of forgery against Chief Agballah.
“It became a shocker how the said Agballah, who is not a registered member of the party, with the aid of some enemies of the party, declared himself as Enugu State Chairman of the APC at a purported State Congress held at an unrecognised venue.
Orji alleged that Agballah has not resigned his membership of the PDP, insisting that he was planted in the party to have it destroyed and finally buried in Enugu State.
“It is shocking that at this time that every other party is mobilising their members to organise primaries and prepare for the electioneering campaign, Agballah is busy looking for whom to expel which is targeted at weakening the APC in Enugu State,” he said.