Everything seems to be no longer at ease at the Abia state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) following the omission of names of prominent stakeholders, including former governor of the state, Orji Uzor Kalu from the approved party register for today’s governorship primaries in the state.
Chairman of the party, Chief Donatus Nwankpa, said at a meeting for aspirants in Umuahia on Saturday that the register of members in Ohafia Local Government Area was not in the list approved by the national secretariat of the party.
The information, however, jolted some of the aspirants, who feared that the development would affect their fortunes at the exercise.
Reacting to the omission of his name, Kalu said that his name was in the manual register at the ward.
Kalu, who is aspiring for Abia North Senatorial seat, said that it was imperative that the party resorted to the register at the ward, subject to the authentication of the state secretariat.
“The party should use the manual register, which is at the ward. It should be authenticated by the Secretary of the party for use at the primaries,” he said.
In his reaction, a frontline governorship aspirant, Mr. Uche Ogah, called for urgent steps to remedy the situation in order to ensure that thousands of his supporters, who defected with him from the Peoples’ Democratic Party to APC, were not disenfranchised.
A House of Representatives aspirant, Mr. Ben Kalu, said that the omission, if not properly addressed, would open the window of opportunity for a series of litigations in the aftermath of the exercise.
The members later moved into a closed door meeting, where they resolved that the issue should be handled by the national committee, in conjunction with the SWC, ahead of the exercise.
Meanwhile, Nwankpa has assured the meeting that the party would provide a level playing field for all the aspirants for the primaries.
The party chairman further warned against any acts, including the use of arms and thugs to disrupt the peaceful conduct of the exercise.
He warned the aspirants not to do anything untoward or shed the blood of innocent people for the sake of party’s ticket.
Nwankpa said that party chieftains “with impeccable character and integrity” would be deployed in all the wards to collate the results at the end of the exercise.
In his brief remark, Sen. Chris Adighije, appealed to all the aspirants to ensure that the party remained united at the end of the exercise in order for them to work harmoniously for success during the general elections.