Enugu APC crisis: Don’t reward political bandits – Okechukwu urges Gov Mbah

A founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Osita Okechukwu, on Monday appealed to Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State not to reward the group led by Chief Ugo Agbala, whom he described as “political bandits,” in the ongoing composition of Ward and Local Government Area executives in the state.

Okechukwu, who acknowledged Governor Mbah as the new leader of the APC in the state, said his appeal was prompted by reports circulating that two of the four slots allocated to the APC in the proposed nine-member Ward and LGA Executive structure may be ceded to Chief Ugo Agbala.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, he queried the basis for such a gesture, asking on what “valid ground or good conscience” Mbah would reward someone he described as “a serial renegade,” who, according to him, “led a political coup that contributed to the APC securing only 4,722 votes in the 2023 presidential election in Enugu State.”

Okechukwu recalled that the APC had garnered over 56,000 votes in the 2019 presidential election and had hoped to build on that performance in 2023 following extensive membership mobilisation.

He said those efforts were derailed after Chief Agbala “was imposed on the party,” adding that “the rest is history.”

The former Director General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON) warned that it would be dangerous to “reward” Chief Agbala, alleging that his “hostile leadership style” drove many party members away and contributed to what he described as the lowest presidential vote tally in the country.

Okechukwu urged Mbah to ensure equity and fairness in the composition of party executives.

He suggested that if the governor rates Chief Agbala so highly despite widespread reservations, then “His Excellency should, as a matter of fairness, allocate two slots to him from the five slots belonging to the PDP.”