Ahead of the supreme court judgment, a socio-political organization in the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abia State chapter, United Progressive Youths for Development Initiative,(UYfDI), has appealed to the judicial arm of government in Nigeria to save the APC from imminent extinction and woeful failure ahead of the march 2023 gubernatorial election in the state.
The pro-democracy group also sued for sincere commitment of party members across the state and the entire Southeast zone, in delivering the progressive party in various electoral wards of the seventeen local government areas of Abia State in the next month’s presidential and National Assembly elections, and as well the state governorship and House of Assembly elections fixed for march 11 by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In a press release made available to journalists on Monday in Aba by the national coordinator, Comrade Lucky Nwachukwu, and the head of media/publicity, Comrade Nwaogwugwu E. Nwabuisi, frowned at the undemocratic activities and continuous interference of the Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma, in the internal affairs of the Abia chapter of the party, and admonished lovers of democracy and patriotic party members to call the governor to order, as his excesses can no longer be tolerated.
The latest statement by the organization is coming on the backdrops of the awaiting judgment of the supreme court, necessitated by the outcome of the concluded governorship primary elections held by the leadership of the APC in Abia State and the leadership crisis bedeviling the party in the state.
However, the youth development Initiative body, lambasted the Imo governor over his open desperation to subvert the general will of the people who overwhelmingly elected the immediate past minister of the federal republic of Nigeria, Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah as their ticket-bearer for the 2023 Abia governorship seat election during the concluded primaries that took place on 26th of May 2022 across the state.
The pressure group also faulted the call for the withdrawal of the legal suit by the authentic Abia gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Dr Uche Ogah, reminding the proponent’s calls that it is the constitutional right of Ogah to resort to legal option to quell the ongoing sinister move by the serial election losers led by the factional party gubernatorial candidate, Mr Ikechi Emenike and few of his political hirelings, instead of toeing dishonourable path of political disharmony.
The UYfDI further insisted that Governor Uzodinma’s inordinate motive to impose famous serial election loser, Emenike, and disgruntled party members as candidates of the APC must be resisted in order to save the party from colossal failure, especially, now the citizenry sets to witness other democratic elections slated to commence next month by the nation’s electoral commission.
The Abia youth group reiterated his appeal to the supreme court of Nigeria to rescue the state APC from impending shameful outing as pointed out in landmark judgment of Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako led federal high court in Abuja, which sacked the state factional party leader and affirmed Ogah as the APC gubernatorial standard-bearer in the state.
“It’s an undisputable fact Mr Ikechi Emenike failed to deliver his electoral ward in Umuahia to the Progressive party during elections in Abia State as particularly displayed in the election results of 2015 and 2019 general elections held in the state by INEC. And these obvious failures and incapacitations of Emenike to deliver political parties he had served as member, are necessitated by his total rejection by the people of the state who formed the major electorates during elections.
“The national leadership of the APC must not align itself with such decision, because Ikechi Emenike also lacked the requisite capacity and the electoral value to secure victory for the governing political party in Nigeria. His style of politicking is shrouded in thuggery, hooliganism, and women/domestic assaults. This has been a man you claim he loves APC and President Buhari, but had never campaigned for the party, rather he has continued to unleash countless and series of destructive media attacks and campaign of calumny against the party and our ebullient gubernatorial candidate, Uche Ogah who was unanimously elected by teeming party members across the 184 wards of the 17 Local government areas in Abia State.
“Today, facts are there that the unprecedented and overwhelming popularity and support being garnered and enjoyed in the Abia State chapter of the All Progressives Congress is courtesy Dr Uche Sampson Ogah who has widely distinguished himself in various facets of human and leadership capacities, including in the world of public and private sector-driven business investments, and industrialization.
“That’s the reason the good people of Abia State yearned for these renowned Abia industrialists, for this onerous task in rewriting the narrative in governance of the state and rebuilding the state, and improving every of her economic and Infrastructural facets, which geared towards enhancing the welfare of Abia people and as well engendering rapid transformation in every section of the state.
“It remains an obvious and undeniable fact that Ogah’s popularity ensured and fostered the 25 percent voted secured by the governing APC during the last 2019 general elections in southeast region, which indeed had never happened in the political history of Abia State since the assumption of the current democratic governance in Nigeria. Dr Ogah has unrelentingly played significant and positive roles in the existing political stability and harmony being witnessed in the state.
“Ogah’s popularity encouraged the current and glaring acceptability of the party by the majority of Abia electorates who are desirous of genuine change in the style of political leadership or governance in Abia State today. You can see present deplorable condition of Infrastructure in the state and also coupled with dwindled and poor economy. These are because of total lack of the needed capacity, competence and expertise to address myriads of challenges facing and impeding Abia’s growth and development.”