Chairman of the All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA, in Abia State, Prince Nnanna Ukaegbu, has denied having any pact with the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), in the state over the 2023 general elections.
The Court of Appeal, Owerri Division had on April 8, 2022, declared Ukaegbu as the authentic state chairman of APGA in Abia State.
The APGA chairman had warned that Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, Prof. Greg Ibe and others who are running for various positions under the APGA platform have wasted their resources as they emerged from illegal primaries.
Describing the allegation of working for PDP to ensure that APGA won’t field candidates in the 2023 elections as baseless, Ukaegbu urged those claiming leadership of the party in the state to obey or appeal the judgment of the Court of Appeal rather than dwelling in propaganda.
He said; “I have heard about the unfortunate allegation, but I don’t have any pact with PDP. I’m not working for PDP. However, I want people to find out who is actually being sponsored by the PDP. Look at the records, journalists ought to do investigations when allegations are made. When I defeated them at the State High Court, they said it was the PDP that sponsored me. They appealed to the Court of Appeal in Owerri and still lost. Who in this present case is being sponsored by the PDP? After the 2019 general election, APGA was still collating results and trying to take a decision about the results. The same people who claimed to be heading APGA in Abia state ran to Government House in Umuahia and made a public declaration that PDP won free and fair. It is still the same people who said PDP is sponsoring me.
“The tribunal agreed with us, this was how Dr. Otti’s petition survived at the tribunal. These issues are in the public domain. How can he be saying that PDP is using me when they are actually working for PDP?
“They are disobeying the Court of Appeal judgment that declared me the authentic chairman of APGA in Abia State. Plethora of court judgments have established the consequences of disobedience of court orders. In Abia state, everybody knows that it is only APGA that can successfully challenge the PDP. They also know that by refusing to obey the court of appeal judgment, APGA will not have candidates in the 2023 polls. They don’t want the party to field candidates because it will serve their interest of their masters well. People should judge between us who have been working for or serving PDP’s interest. A democrat obeys the order of the court. If you disobey court order, the consequences are too clear. The court said if you disobey, every action you take is null and void. You should ask them why they are following that dangerous path when they know the implications.
“It is because they are working for the opponents of APGA for the party not to field candidates in the polls. They still have a chance to appeal to the Supreme Court, but through their actions they are bent on having APGA not fielding candidates. As true democrats, we are waiting for them at the Supreme Court, but they chose to disobey the Court of Appeal Judgment.”
