BREAKING NEWS!

ANOTHER ALTER OF INJUSTICE HAS COLLAPSED

Yesterday, the 19th day of March, 2024, Honourable Justice k. Okpe of the High Court of Enugu State, Enugu Division struck out the two Suits filed by Adolphus Ude against the All Progressives Congress(APC), Hon Ugochukwu Agballah, and Chief Uche Nnaji in Suit No. E/47/2023 and Suit No. E/74/2023 with a total cost of N1.5m awarded against him.

The said Adolphus Ude abandoned the two Suits following the preliminary objection challenging the competence of the Suits, the Jurisdiction of the Court. Mr Udeh who had alleged financial impropriety against Chief Uche Nnaji and Ugochukwu Agballah concerning Presidential election funds when both Agballah and Nnaji had claimed they did not receive any presidential election funds for Enugu state.

The duo of Agballah and Nnaji had filed a case of defamation against Adolphus Udeh and certain newspapers and online blogs that carried the story which had gone viral.

Adolphus Udeh who then quickly rushed to the court to ask Nnaji and Agballah to give an account of the said one Naira he alleged they received for presidential election.

In their cross defence Agballah and Nnaji had claimed that the entire Presidential, governorship and national and state assembly elections were sponsored by Uche Nnaji, who had earlier in a much publicized national press conference asked President Bola Tinubu not to bring one kobo to Enugu as he claimed that the much expected presidential election funds was at the root of the crisis in APC Enugu state.

The Enugu APC was then experiencing a seemingly unending crisis by Ken Nnamani, Sullivan Chime, Geoffrey Onyeama group and the Ben Nwoye group who were at each other throat before the Nnaji/Agballah group came in 2021 and took over the leadership of the party. This crisis seems to have stopped after they were all suspended by the state executive for campaigning openly against the presidential and governorship candidates of the party.
Ken Nnamani, Sullivan Chime , Geoffrey Onyeama and Ben Nwoye group actually campaigned openly for the PDP and also Labour Party which earned them rightful suspension from the the state and South East levels of the party. Since then peace had returned to the party in Enugu state and the party has recorded new entrants. President Tinubu had appointed Uche Nnaji minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which confirmed the claim that the deep pocket Chief Nnaji single handedly footed the bills for the elections in Enugu state.

It is pertinent to note that the Mr Adolphus Udeh has been singularly fingered as the personality instigating the then unending crisis in the party. He was the one who had at different times over a period of almost eight years since the formation of APC been making very outlandish accusations against Onyeama, Ken Nnamani and Ben Nwoye. And had always switched allegiance from one party group and leader to the other.

Mr Udeh who in 2021 unsuccessfully ran for the office of the State Chairman of APC in Ben Nwoye’s faction against Ugochukwu Agballah was also one of the campaign co-ordinators of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar the PDP presidential candidate which fueled the speculation that his diatribe and viral social media false accusations against the duo of Nnaji/Agballah APC leadership was being sponsored by then PDP leadership of Enugu state.

During the 2023 general elections, Adophus Udeh unashamedly went to the airport with other co-ordinators of PDP to welcome Atiku Abubakar when he came on a presidential campaign just like Ben Nwoye who went on a PDP rally dressed in APC regalia to campaign for the PDP governorship candidate in Enugu State and who also went on a public media covered campaign for the Labour senatorial candidate.

In the past most APC leaders were constant visitors to the PDP Lion building and also nominated their wives and Children to cabinet and Local Government Area positions just like the former governor of Enugu state Sullivan Chime whose daughter is a commissioner in Peter Mba’s govt and who is reputed to be an insider to n the govt.

This turn of events before now made APC not to be taken seriously as a political party. But it is gratifying to note that the present crop of APC executives led by Hon Ugochukwu Agballah has clearly not been frolicking with the PDP govt in Enugu state as they used to do. And seems very determined to build the party from the ward level upwards. It is also not intimidated or beholden to the multitude of super stakeholders who kept undermining the party in the past.

There is a clear strong headed no nonsense policy to instil discipline irrespective of the political status of the offender in the entire rank and file of APC Enugu state. The State Chairman who has a reputation of a no nonsense man and a stickler for political discipline and astuteness while the leader Chief Uche Nnaji is widely known for his single mindedness and very strong convictions. Let’s see if this duo can build anything out of the party of any thing goes that they controversially took over the leadership in one of the most mysterious political coups witnessed in any state political party in Nigeria

It is worthy to also note that the party did not do well in the last general elections in the state which is partly due to the regional and religious politics at play in the South east region and from the desire of the region to take the presidency but moreso from an erstwhile manifestly compromised leadership that were arm in gloves with the then PDP leadership in Enugu.
But, all that seems to be changing with the new cohesion in APC and the building from the wards which has coincided with the collapse of Labour Party in not only Enugu but the entire South East.

The APC needs strong leadership to win the confidence of the people of Enugu state which from from all indications point that they are on the right course, going by the entrance of two former PDP senators and ex-minister who all played leading roles in the victory of Labour and the PDP in Enugu state.

So Judiciary still dey this country?