By Ezeocha Nzeh
Factional presidential candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Chekwas Okorie has called on President Muhammadu Buhari and governor of Anambra State, Charles Soludo to weigh into the crisis in the party and call on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to obey the supreme court judgement of APGA leadership.
Okorie, who made the plea at a press briefing on Monday in Abuja, said it was unfortunate that Chief Victor Oye, still parades himself as the party’s National Chairman when there was no lawful national convention of APGA that legitimised his emergence for his second term in office since 2019.
He noted that the 2019 convention of APGA held in Imo State, which produced Edozie Njoku as national chairman and other members of the National Working Committee (NWC) has been affirmed by the Federal High Court in Abuja as lawful and binding.
Okorie expressed concerns that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), that should operate fairly has allegedly “armed other rival political parties with weapons to challenge APGA victories in the 2023 general election on the ground of invalid nomination process.”
He warned that the party would suffer huge defeat which may likely lead to its extinction if the issues are left unaddressed, before the elections.
“Since the tenure of Professor Chukwuma Soludo is secure, having taken the oath of office as the Governor of Anambra State on the 17th of March, 2022 and therefore protected by the relevant provisions of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution (as amended) and since he is the de facto highest elected leader of APGA.
“I urge him to intervene at this critical moment to save APGA from imminent peril.
“He is in the best position to wade in and bring Oye and the National Chairman, Chief Edozie Njoku to a roundtable to harmonize and regularize the nomination of APGA candidates for the 2023 general election.
“If INEC continues to prevaricate on APGA matter and Governor Chukwuma Soludo does not intervene, all APGA candidates will suffer avoidable double jeopardy,” he said.
It would be recalled that the APGA faction of Chief Edozie Njoku produced Chekwas Okorie as Presidential candidate, while that of Victor Oye produced Prof. Philip Umeadi as the Presidential candidate.
