As the All Progressive Congress ( APC) prepares for its congresses and national convention, trouble is brewing in the Abia State Chapter of the party because of the obduracy of the old order to embrace change and face reality that time has come for the reformation of the party with a strengthened leadership and committed followership. This old order comprising those who had failed the party in the past, and who couldn’t garner up more than 2% for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR in the last election want the status quo to remain, a stagnant party ,inept leadership and lethargic followership.
Ordinarily, one would not have bothered to raise this open letter to the National Chairman, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda if we all believed in democracy and were prepared to embrace the congresses in a manner that would guarantee transparency, accountability and inclusiveness, without recourse to the politics of the Old which caused the APC its political failure in the past. All the members expected that the exercise would be governed by the most democratic practices devoid of imposition and intimidation. But it appears that the reverse may be the case.
Before proceeding further, let me apprise the Honourable National Chairman of the history of the APC in Abia state. It is on record that the entire population of the party was not more than 2,000 prior to the 2023 General election. Only very few personalities like Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu, the current Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, were able to win their seats on personal clout. It was not easy for APC to convince voters in the state to vote for the party because of the sheer incompetence of both the leadership and executive of the party at all levels. The self-styled leader of the APC in Abia, Chief Ikechi Emenike, and the chairman of the party Chief Ononugbo could not win their units, talkless of the wards in the state during the 2023 elections. There is one particular ward in Umuahia North that the entire executive is composed of the same relatives, yet the unit did not record one vote for APC. It means that none even voted for the party they claimed to lead.
It was after the 2023 general election that Hon Benjamin Kalu started reviving the party. Because of his sheer goodwill, he was able to attract all the bigwigs who had left PDP as a result of their implosion arising from injustice and high handedness perpetrated against some members by their leaders .
Because of this aggressive campaign by Benjamin Kalu, many people started flooding to the APC. During the current registration exercise, the deputy speaker has spent millions of naira to ensure that there is adequate grassroots mobilisation for membership. His campaign for the reelection of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has gained traction in the state because he has backed them with facts on what the administration has done for Ndigbo in general and Abia people in particular. In short, Hon Benjamin Kalu has become the new face of APC in the state.
It is therefore baffling that instead of bestowing the leadership of the party on Benjamin Kalu, we are hearing that Ikechi Emenike has been asked to retain the post and that the outgoing executive which has served for the mandatory four years is also going to be retained. That would be an aberration.
Conventionally, in any state where the APC does not produce the governor, the highest political office holder in that state automatically becomes the leader of the party in the state. In the case of Abia State, Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu, who is the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, and by extension the number six man in political ranking in Nigeria is the highest office holder from Abia State. He is, therefore, qualified to be the leader of APC in the state. Anything short of that would amount to internal sabotage against the party.
Following that, one wonders why the outgoing executive should be returned to the office given their abysmal performance in the past. Doesn’t it make a common sense that fresh blood should be injected into the system for efficient productivity and results? At any rate, since we are in a democracy, is it not better that everyone interested in the executive position should be subjected to a free and fair election so that members will democratically choose their leadership?
Stories are flying that Abia APC is being manipulated by external influences that want the party not to remain dormant without achieving any result. That’s why I am appealing to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, and the National Chairman of the APC, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda to thoroughly investigate what is happening in Abia state chapter of APC to avert the impending crisis and danger that may lead to the failure of the party in the 2027 elections.
I wonder what people like Emenike ,Ononugbo, and their sponsors would gain if Tinubu loses the election in Abia state or scores just 2% as happened in 2023? The new members of Abia APC who are operating under the leadership of Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu have promised to garner more than the required minimum 25% votes if they are allowed to lead the campaign. Nothing should happen to obstruct this vision and task. The National Executive of APC should move decisively to avert this unavoidable crisis.
