From: Chidi Nnadi, Enugu
A stormy cloud appears to be gathering in the Enugu State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the party has set up two disciplinary committees to investigate its Publicity Secretary, Mrs. Kate Offor and the Director-General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr. Osita Okechukwu.
The duo was accused by the party of issuing unauthorised press statements that most often do not conform with the party’s positions.
The latest of such publications, the Daily Sun gathered, was the release issued by Mrs. Offor, where the party purportedly advised the Deputy Senate President, Chief Ike Ekweremadu, not to contemplate switching membership to APC, warning that he would not be welcomed.
Daily Sun gathered that already the two committees have been constituted and Mrs. Offor and Mr. Okechukwu notified to appear before them even as the committees have one month to submit their reports.
But when contacted, Mrs. Offor and Mr. Okechukwu said that no disciplinary committee has contacted them, saying that the party leaders in the state only wanted to be unnecessarily busy.
However, the state APC Chairman, Dr. Ben Nwoye and his Deputy, Mr. Adolphus Udeh, when contacted, confirmed that the party was investigating the two party stalwarts for publishing unauthorised materials, particularly the one on Senator Ekweremadu.
According to Dr Nwoye, the committees set up border on publications that are unauthorised.
His words: “A committee was set up for that, they said Ekweremadu should not join the party, and you people published it. You people knew there are many inconsistencies between Kate Offor’s position and the party’s position.
“There are certain things myself as the chairman of the party I don’t have the authority to say except after having a meeting with the state executives; I can represent their views, but that view has to be a consensus with the majority agreement. For example, if we say that we don’t want Ekweremadu, then we should call a meeting in the state and agree that we don’t want Ekweremadu by giving our various opinions than this waking up by an individual to start insulting the man.
“What they do is another person will write the release and sign it with another person’s name, we know that. Reporters know that there are conflicts in those releases. Myself as chairman cannot just wake up without consultations, we have to articulate it before saying that the state APC has agreed on so, so issue, we have a constitution.
“Most of the times my statement regarding issues comes after a general press conference with other members of the state working committee and at times some local government chairmen; it is not when somebody is sitting in his kitchen with his small ipad to write and distribute to journalists and said it is Enugu APC.”
But insisting that no party disciplinary committee has invited her, Mrs Offor said: “I don’t know about any disciplinary committee. They have not given me any notice or invitation to that effect. I am the publicity secretary of the party, so I don’t need the permission of anybody to do my job.
“I don’t need anybody’s permission to criticize Ekweremadu. As I said Ekweremadu was one of those people that destroyed the PDP and truncated its internal democracy; therefore, he should stay in the PDP and rectify this, finish; that was what I wrote, so I don’t need their permission because I am the publicity secretary.
“I am not an information officer that should wait to be issued directives before doing my job; I was elected and the chairman was elected. Our party constitution did not state anywhere that the publicity secretary will have to take permission from anybody before he or she to issue a statement. I don’t see how my statement embarrassed anybody. Somebody said that Ike Ekweremadu should join APC to retain his seat as Senate President and I said that Ike Ekweremadu does not need to join APC to retain his position. If he wants to come into APC it should be that he wants to be a progressive not on the grounds that he wants to retain his seat.
“The chairman (Nwoye) issued a statement that he will register him personally if he decides to come in, but his men issued a counter-statement that Ike Ekweremadu is not ready to join APC. Even Ike Ekweremadu criticizes President Buhari in the Senate, so I don’t see why I should get permission to criticize Ekweremadu. So, if Ike Ekweremadu criticizes Buhari, I don’t see the reason APC cannot criticize Ekweremadu.
Also Okechukwu when contacted waved aside the party setting up a disciplinary committee to investigate him, saying “please go and publish it, they only want to be busy.”
One of the party members from Ezeagu Local Government Area, Mr. Ikenna Odunike had on January 28 petitioned the state chairman, alleging that Okechukwu was issuing out “frivolous statements to the press without the consent of the party.”