Money is at the root of the crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Enugu, which led to the call by some of the bigwigs from the state calling for the removal of the party chairman there, the governorship candidate of the party, Uchenna Nnaji, alleged on Sunday.
Recall that a group, led by former Senate President Ken Nnamani and including Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, former Governor of Enugu State, Sullivan Chime; General JOJ Okoloagu; Sen. Ayogu Eze; Chief Gbazuagu Nweke Gbazuagu; Barr. Eugene Odo; Barr. Eugene Odo; Barr. Ifeanyi Nwoga; Chief Onyemuche Nnamani and Director-General, Voice of Nigeria had visited its National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, last week asking him to wade into the leadership crisis in the state.
The former Senate President, Sen. Ken Nnamani said the delegation was submitting the petition as elders of the Party in the state to notify the Party’s National Chairman and NWC on developments in the party in Enugu State, which required urgent intervention.
Nnaji, according to a report by The Punch, said that the current crisis rocking the party was predicated on the campaign money for the state.
Nnaji, who spoke at an emergency stakeholders meeting held at the South-East zonal office of the party, said if the anticipated campaign fund from the APC’s presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, would be a source of destabilisation for the party, the fund should instead be withheld until after the election.
“The current crisis in Enugu APC is all about Tinubu’s Campaign money. The so-called stakeholders are fighting to be in charge and preside over the disbursement of Tinubu’s money.
“We don’t want the campaign money of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu to prosecute the 2023 general election in Enugu State. By the special Grace of God, we will use Enugu APC resources to prosecute the election in 2023 and after the election, the party will refund us. It is Tinubu’s money that is causing the crisis in Enugu APC.
“After this emergency meeting, I will go to Abuja tomorrow (Monday) to tell the national chairman of the party that we don’t want campaign funds. On Tuesday I will meet our presidential candidate, Tinubu and I will tell him the same thing.”
Nnaji, however, appealed to ‘Abuja stakeholders’ to come home and join him in the grassroots mobilisation of support for the party so that the party will win the election.
According to him, he, alongside Agballah and his executives has so far travelled across 184 wards and 204 communities across 13 LGs in the state ahead of the election in 2023.
“It is unprecedented in the history of the party in the state and shows how prepared we are to not only contest the election but also win,” he said.
He regretted that now that the party is being repositioned to win an election, the mischief makers are trying to remove the executives of the party just about six months before the election. “We want to be small but effective.”
Nnaji maintained that the APC had never been a political party in Enugu State till when Agballah came on board as chairman but “we have awakened and held the promise of a better future for our people.
“Our leaders who want Agballah removed were not even paying for their ward offices across communities. Now, we have come to make the system work again and they want to remove us. Our executives are doing well and deserve every support they need. No other party can embark on the kind of tour we have embarked upon.”
Meanwhile, the party faithful that attended the meeting unanimously passed a vote of confidence on Chief Agballah-led executive of the party.
Recall that Sen. Abdullahi Adamu promised Nnamani and company that the NWC will study the petition and invite relevant party stakeholders in the state to chart a way forward. He assured that contestations will be resolved and the party better position in Enugu State ahead of the general elections.
He said, “I assure you that because of the respect I and the National Working Committee have for you, we are going to take a look at the petition. We will invite those necessary among the leadership of our party in the state so that we see the best way forward. In the course of trying to solve existing problems, we should avoid creating new problems. That is very important. The election is by the corner, we don’t want to open the pandora’s box to the extent that we have more problems and then cannot address the problems before the elections. Whatever we do, we are going to do with utmost care.”
▪︎ Additional report by The Punch