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2023: Ebonyi APC Group Raises Alarm Over Imposition Plot, Abandonment
A group under the aegis of ‘Concern Ebonyi Movement’, has accused the Governor David Umahi-led All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ebonyi State, of abandoning the legacy members of the party in the state, expressing fear that the development portends a grave political danger for the party in the forthcoming party primaries and elections come 2023.
The group subsequently called on the governor to immediately reverse the trend whereby all local government chairmen are single handedly handpicked without carrying along old members of the APC who had laboured day and night for the party.
They said it was shocking that the new APC members that joined the party alongside Governor Umahi have continued to boast that there is nothing anybody can do, saying that they enjoy the backing of the national leadership of the party.
They added that the party must concede some positions to the old APC members if it is serious about winning elections in the state.
The group speaks on the heels of an alleged plot by the governor to impose unpopular aspirants as candidates on the party for the 2023 elections in the state.
In a statement jointly issued Friday by the convener of the group, Dr Uchechukwu Nwafor and Emeka Afam, and made available to journalists in Abakaliki, the state capital, the group said what the leadership of APC needed under the watch of Governor Umahi was to provide a level playing field for all aspirants vying for political offices in the coming primaries, adding that any attempt to armtwist any aspirant may spell doom for the APC.
They therefore called on the national leadership of the ruling party to prevail on Governor Umahi to ensure equal treatment for all party members.
According to the statement, “It is no longer news that the way and manner the governor who is the leader of the party has carried on gives reason to raise this alarm. We deserve to be given the right of first refusal having kept the party alive in the state.
“Yes, we are eternally grateful to the governor for not only joining the APC, but also for the wonderful work he is doing in the State.
“His infrastructural development as well as people oriented policies have endeared him and the party to the people.
“However, while we commend him on that, he must also not take it for granted that it will not be easy for the party to win the 2023 elections without a fight from the PDP.
“The PDP remain strong in Ebonyi State and the party is also looking for loophole to employ in order to place them in a vantage position to win the polls.
“This is where our worry comes in. Governor Umahi must keep the APC united and avoid any anti-democratic tendency that will not augur well for the party.”
