Rivers APC crises: Aguma remains chairman – Sen. Abe

Rivers APC crises: Aguma remains chairman – Sen. Abe

Sunday, July 5, 2020 7:46 pm


Abe

Sen. Magnus Abe, a former Rivers South East District Senator at the National Assembly, says Mr Igochukwu Aguma remains the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers.

Abe, in a statement issued by his media aide, Parry Benson, on Sunday in Port Harcourt, said the alleged suspension of Aguma from office was in clear breach of a valid court judgment.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that a State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt had on June 9, declared Aguma as chairman of the party’s caretaker committee following a petition to the court.

However, Aguma was later suspended from office by the Sen. Andrew Uchendu-led State Executive Committee (SEC) faction, on the grounds that Aguma allegedly took critical decisions concerning the party without the committee members.

Abe, a lawyer, however, said that the decision of the faction was inconsequential due to the subsisting court judgment.

”So, even if the judgment is set aside, the action of the SEC members was already in defiance of a subsisting court judgment, considering the time they took the action.

”They should have collected the signatures of SEC members and served a notice to Aguma with a demand to summon a meeting.

”There are constitutional provisions in our party’s constitution to summon an extraordinary meeting of the state executive committee of our party,” he explained.

Abe noted  that Aguma, after he was declared chairman by the court, invited the party SEC members for a meeting and that members fully attended the meeting.

He added that a quorum was formed and decisions reached with the party’s state executive committee members at the meeting.

”The SEC members met and took certain decisions, including, asking the acting chairman to draw a blueprint on the way forward and present to the members at a later date.

”The proper procedure for those (SEC faction) who later met, would have been to collect the signature of members and serve a notice to the chairman, with demand to summon a meeting.

”So, they cannot call a meeting in his (Sen. Uchendu’s) house, which other members were not invited and usurp the powers of the SEC, to set up a factional executive.

”This action, at the time it was done was a clear breach of a valid court judgment,” he pointed out.

Abe insisted that the party’s SEC could only meet if summoned by the party chairman or when a proper procedure was used by members to override the chairman.

The Senator urged the party members to emulate President Muhammadu Buhari’s obedience to court orders, advising factional members not to deepen the crises in the party.


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