N100m scandal rocks Imo APGA

By Ezeocha Nzeh
The leadership of the opposition All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in Imo State is currently facing credibility challenges ahead of the 2019 governorship election.
Some of the aspirants for the governorship election under APGA platform have raised the alarm over an alleged plot to rig the primary election by the partya��s leadership in the Senate.
APGA has in recent time become the bride of politicians in the state, who have severed their relationships with either the All Progressives Congress (APC) or the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), with a record of over eight aspirants declaring interest in the partya��s ticket
While he party is yet to conduct the primary, there have been allegations in certain quarters that the State Executive Council (SEC) of the party had turned the contest into a business.
One of the aspirants alleged that the SEC of Imo APGA had collected the sum of N100million from one of the defectors to the party, who has also declared interest in governorship race.
The aggrieved aspirant, who cautioned that such arrangement could cause APGA the Imo governorship election, regretted that the partya��s leadership had continued to deal more with defectors from the PDP, who have allegedly bought them over with cash, warning that the party might witness an implosion if the SEC trades with the ticket.
a�?Some of us have been carrying and catering for the party since the past three years. Now that it is election period, the defectors from PDP and APC have hijacked the structure and the Sate Executive Council (SEC) seems to have relegated us to the background and are now dealing with them.
a�?We are currently investigating a report that one of the defectors, who has just declared for governorship on APGA platform has bought over the structure, after he paid the sum of N100million with the promise to hand over the ticket to him. This could cause us our well planned strategy of taking over the Imo State Government House in 2019a�?, he warned.
When contacted, the state Chairman of APGA, Mr. Peter Ezeobi, simply described The AUTHORITYa��s action as idiotic.
His comments: a�?This is what gets on my nerve, since I have been carrying the party alone; nobody has come up with any question, now you people are bringing this stupid question. You and your alleged aspirant are idiots, cowards and mulesa�?, he told our correspondent and put off his phone.
However, the APGA Publicity Secretary in Imo State, Dr. George Nkworji, denied the allegation, noting that the party was committed to taking over the Imo State Government without any form of crisis and rancour.
Nkworji said that the SEC has no plans to sell the partya��s ticket and pledged that the governorship primary would be free and fair.
a�?In the first place, you cana��t be talking of N100million, if the party wants to sell the ticket. Imo APGA is worth more than that amount now. There is no person like that as the party will definitely carry all the aspirants along in its primary. Nothing will be hidden because that will be our road to the Imo State Government House,a�? he said.