The Alhaji Sadiq Masalla-led faction of the All Progressive Grand Alliance has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission to withdraw its recognition of Chief Victor Umeh as the national chairman of the party.
The group said Tuesday’s Police report clearing his faction of forgery allegation had confirmed that the members of APGA preferred him as their leader and not Umeh.
The acting National Secretary of APGA, Dr. Ifedi Okwenna, in the letter dated October 29 and addressed to INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, insisted that doing so would give legitimacy to Article 9 and 22 of APGA constitution which gave two-third of NEC members the right to convene NEC meeting through a resolution to do so, where the chairman fails to convene such meetings.
He said, “INEC cannot give APGA its chairman, it is the members of the party that can decide who leads them and this was done on July 16, 2012 when Umeh and Shinkafi were both suspended and Alhaji Sadeeq Masalla and Dr. Ifedi Okwena appointed to act till a national convention of the party is held.”
A copy of the letter was obtained by our correspondent on Thursday in Abuja.
Umeh, in his reaction on the telephone on Thursday, alleged the members of the Masalla faction of APGA were fraudsters.
He said, “How can I react to such things. Do your work well by going to INEC and police and do investigative journalism to help Nigeria.
“I don’t have anything to do with fraudsters and criminals that are unrepentant. From one crime, they go to another one and all these thing will be uravelled very soon. All of them will be rounded up and they will go to jail.”