‘Agballa Responsible For APC’s Shameful Election Performance In Enugu’

Posted by Ignatius Okpara Featured, Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria Tuesday, April 18th, 2023

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – More revelations have emerged on the reason why the crisis- ridden All Progressives Congress (APC) performed poorly in Enugu state in the just concluded 2023 general elections.

The party failed to secure any seat in either of the 24 seats of Enugu state House of Assembly, just as it could not win any seat in the National Assembly for the state, as well as in the Governorship elections.

Our Correspondent writes that the party also performed abysmally in the presidential election with less than 4. Percent of the votes cast in the state, which was alleged to be votes garnered by the party’s Independent Campaign Council ICC from the grassroot for Tinubu and Shettima.

The Party in the state had thronged from one crisis to the other, particularly among its leadership in the state, but the APC Enugu state chapter succumbed to deeper crisis close to the February and March 2023 general elections with most of the prominent members of the APC staying away from the party over alleged conversion of the party to a private estate by its incumbent Embattled Chairman, Chief Ugochukwu Agballa.

Subsequently, the Chairman in a recent action after the election expelled and suspended the prominent members from the party, citing allegations of anti-party activities by the party leaders who brought him in from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to become the state chairman of the party.

Revealing reasons for the party’s poor outing in the general elections Monday , a key stakeholder of the party, Hon. Gerald Chinonso Nworisa pointed accusing fingers squarely to Agballa, alleging that the state chairman was a double-faced merchant for the premeditated hatchet job.

According to Nworisa, Ugo Agballa lives in falsehood, self-deception and manipulation, disclosing that during the state primary elections, Agballa insisted that Chief Uche Nnaji should emerge as unopposed governorship candidate for the party in Enugu state.

He alleged that Ugo Agballa was strictly mandated by Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo state to deliver Uche Nnaji as governorship candidate of the party in Enugu state, yet Agballa went behind to approach Chief Ike Ekweremadu who withdrew from the PDP and promised to offer the former Deputy Senate president, the governorship ticket of the APC.

Nworisa stated further that Ekwermadu queried Agballa why he was making such offer to him while he was aware that the APC had Uche Nnaji as their candidate, but that Ugo Agballa told Ekweremadu that Uche Nnaji was a passerby and a placeholder, who is not serious for the contest.

Hear him: “Ugo Agballa emphasized that Uche Nnaji cannot win any election, he allegedly demanded a certain amount from Ekweremadu so he could handover the APC governorship ticket to him, (Ekweremadu).

“Ekweremadu paid Ugo to the tune of his demand. All these happened in Carlson Swiss Lodge where Ugo Agballa lodged for five days at the expense of Ike Ekweremadu.

“Funny enough, as a double-faced merchant he is, Ugo Agballa went to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and told him that Ekweremadu was lobbying seriously to have APC governorship ticket.

“Governor Ugwuanyi allegedly paid Ugo heavily to do everything possible to block Ekweremadu from having the ticket of the APC. Double Deal you call it? It is worse than that.

“Ugo Agballa then after being paid heavily by Governor Ugwuanyi went to the press to castigate Ekweremadu calling him all sorts of names.

“The press release went viral. Ekweremadu became disappointed at Ugo’s treacherous attitude and then started making moves to use federal might to pick the governorship ticket.

“Ugo cried to Governor Hope Uzodimma, complaining that Ekweremadu wants to mess him up with federal might by attempting to hijack the governorship ticket from Abuja.

“Governor Uzodimma before then never knew that Ugo, whom he vested trust on was into double deal merchandizing with the APC governorship ticket and swindling different quarters of hundred millions of naira,” Nworisa alleged.

He further narrated that Governor Hope Uzodimma and the National chairman of the party, Senator Abdulahi Adamu stepped in to broker peace between Ekweremadu and Uche Nnaji with a balanced power negotiation formula and resolved the matter through excruciating pains.

Nworisa said that Agballa still frustrated the gains the party would have made through the entrance of Senator Ike Ekweremadu into the APC when Agballa still went further castigating Ekweremadu.

“Ekweremadu would have joined APC without being the gubernatorial candidate but because of Ugo Agballa he refused even when he was offered candidacy for his supporters.

“Ugo Agballa has caused more harm than good to Governor Hope Uzodinma and Uche Nnaji. Uche Nnaji was at the firm grip of Ugo Agballa to the length and breadth that he – Nnaji never had time to listen or even discuss his governorship project with any other person aside Ugo Agballa.

“No wonder Uche Nnaji manifesto came out barely one month before the election. This is a strategy Agballa hatched so that there will be limited time to discuss the manifesto in public space before the election, so that the electorates wouldn’t have ample opportunity to interrogate the contents of the manifesto.

“There was no proper campaign for votes anywhere in the state.

“Ugo Agballa sold the idea to chase stakeholders away to Uche Nnaji, for him to hatchet his plan well on any available funds and Tinubu’s cabinet appointments which have been his main target.

The APC Chieftain added that Ugo Agballa cannot be trusted with money or position. He betrayed everyone including his shadow. Ugo is a man without conscience.

“Ugo is enjoying borehole that Ekweremadu gave to Ugo’s Udi community which he hijacked and monopolized that borehole and site it in his hotel premises in Udi town at the expense of the masses in his usual manner of converting public funds and utility for his selfish gains and interest.

“Ugo is a man that everyone who comes in contact with him has one ugly story or the other to tell. He leaves unforgettable scars on anyone he comes in contact with. He was paid to destroy APC in Enugu State but we won’t allow him to do it and get out with it.

“He must be held responsible to account for his numerous evil deeds and shortcomings,” Nworisa vowed.