The State Executive Committee meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Enugu State Chapter was held on Saturday held at the Party Secretariat in Enugu has appointed Chief Ikeje Asogwa as the new Chairman, THE CITIZEN has learnt.
According to a source at the meeting which deliberated extensively on several issues on how to move the Party forward for the challenges ahead accepted the resignation of Engr. Vita Abba from office as the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Enugu State.
“This was sequel to a letter of resignation to the State Executive Committee dated October 20, 2014, which was read on the floor of the State Executive Committee meeting held today to enable him stand for election in the forthcoming Party Primaries in the State.
“Appointed Chief Ikeje Asogwa who is from the same zone with the former State Party Chairman as the new Chairman of the Party in the State, in line with Article 47 (6) of the PDP Constitution,” the source said.
According to him, the party commended the out-gone State Chairman for his meritorious and selfless service to the Party and wished him well in his future endeavors.
“The State Party reaffirmed it’s earlier adoption of Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi as the consensus governorship candidate of the Party for the 2015 governorship election in Enugu State,” he said.
THE CITIZEN was reliably informed that the outgoing Chairman, Engr Abba was ill due to office pressure and was flown to Germany for medical attention, adding that he is recovering quickly. .
It was also gathered that Abba resigned to enable him contest for the Federal House of Representatives, representing Nsukka/Igbo-Eze South Federal Constituency in Enugu state. The position is currently occupied by Right Hon. Patrick Asadu.
Until his recent appointment, Ikeje was the managing director of Enugu State Housing Authority.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Chairman of the party, Elder David Aja, who was at the meeting has rejected the appointment of the new chairman, insisting that he (Aja) is the authentic acting chairman of the party in line with section 47 (1) of the PDP constitution.
Aja who addressed journalists in Enugu on Saturday evening faulted the process that produced the new chairman arguing that he was the one duly empowered to convene the SEC meeting in the event of the resignation of the chairman and not the secretary.
Aja told newsmen that if the state chairman of the party, Vita Abba, has resigned, he ought to be duly informed to enable him act until a substantive state chairman was elected.
Declaring the SEC decision as “illegal, null and void”, Aja said: “I told them that under section 37 (1) of the party’s constitution, if the national chairman resigns, the deputy chairman takes over, even if it is for one day and he should be the one to convene the National Executive Committee (NEC) where a new national chairman will be elected, but they turned down my submission.
“I was sitting beside Governor Chime and I told him that what they were doing was wrong because I am the right person to convene the meeting but he said that under section 47(1), that the SEC can meet and chose another person from the same zone to replace the chairman.
“I told them that I was not complaining about who replaces the chairman but that the procedure was wrong. I wanted to walk out of the meeting but a governorship aspirant asked me to sit back that it was wrong to walk out on the governor.
“As far as I am concerned, I remain the acting chairman of the party in the state until a substantive chairman is elected”.
Explaining that he was not officially invited to the meeting, Aja added; “Someone informed him of a meeting of the state executive council holding behind his office and he decided to go there and ascertain what was happening and on getting there, he saw Governor Sullivan Chime and some members of the party already seated.
On inquiry, he was informed that the state secretary of the party, Steve Oruruo convened the meeting and he decided to sit down and listen. The meeting was informed that Abba has resigned and that the meeting was called to select a new state chairman.
“Most members of the state executive committee were not present at the meeting and that he felt what they were doing at the meeting was not right.
“I told them I was the right person to chair the meeting in the absence of the state chairman but they refused. I also told them that the meeting should be rescheduled to enable him convene a proper SEC meeting that will decide the way forward. I told them that what they were doing was null and void since the meeting was not convened by me, they rejected my submission claiming that they have the right under section 47 (6) of the PDP constitution to convene the meeting”.
Efforts to reach the State Party’s spokesman before press time proved abortive.
