Police Take over Enugu APC as Crisis Deepens

Party expels deputy chair, cautions presidential aide

Stern looking mobile policemen yesterday took over the Enugu State secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) located at GRA, Enugu even as the leadership crisis rocking the party deepened.

The armed mobile policemen who came in different Toyota Hilux vehicles in company of members of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad, as well as civil defence officers, however, did not molest anybody.

Also, the party announced the expulsion of its Deputy Chairman, Alphonsus Udeh, for alleged breach of party rules while dismissing the purported suspension of its chairman, Ben Nwoye as a ruse.

The party said a disciplinary committee would be set up to recommend appropriate sanction against some party officers including the Woman Leader, Queen Nwankwo, Youth Leader, Ikechukwu Oloto and seven others for alleged invasion of the party office and carting away of vital documents.

The embattled Deputy Chairman, Udeh had on Monday in company of some party officers also announced the suspension of the party’s chairman, Nwoye for alleged financial impropriety and declared himself as the acting chairman.

But, briefing journalists after their emergency state executive committee meeting at the party secretariat, embattled chairman, Nwoye said the presence of policemen at the party office was to maintain law and order, noting that security report available to the party showed that some party members had engaged thugs to unleash mayhem on them.

Nwoye who also read out a resolution of the party’s SEC attended by 49 out of 69 members said a vote of confidence was passed on him, while accusing the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Justice Reform and the party’s deputy governorship candidate in the state, Mrs. Juliet Ibekaku, of masterminding the crisis in the party for her selfish reasons.

Nwoye said the crisis in the party might not be unconnected with the senatorial ambition of Mrs. Ibekaku who he said was no longer comfortable since the former governor, Sullivan Chime joined the party.

“Its rather unfortunate that because of the activities of Ibekaku, Enugu remains the only state where the party’s Gubernatorial candidate has not been given an appointment. She’s busy running everybody down, causing crisis in the party, but I can assure her that we’ll no longer tolerate it,” he noted.

He reaffirmed the party’s undivided loyalty to President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie- Oyegun, noting however that no member of the party’s SEC would be answerable to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation or any other government appointees.