Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia
All is now set for the state congress of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abia State during which the state working committee (SWC) members would be elected by delegates that had emerged from the ward level.
With five delegates elected from each of the 184 wards in the state a total of 920 delegates are expected to gather in Umuahia, the state capital to elect the state officers of the party.
The 11-man State Congress Committee for Abia led by its chairman Rt. Hon. Kolawole Babatunde are already in Umuahia to supervise the exercise.
However, feelers indicate that the two contending groups in Abia APC would hold separate congresses though with varying levels of preparations.
While the group loyal to the Secretary the APC Contact/Strategy Committee, Chief Ikechi Emenike are visibly in the mood for the congress with posters of candidates adorning the walls of their office at Uyo Street, the groups led by Hon. Donatus Nwankpa appeared to be in sober preparation. Their office along Azikiwe Road Umuahia is devoid of any campaign poster.
Some stakeholders of the Nwankpa led group were said to be in closed door meeting at the country home of Chief Chris Adighije at Olokoro, possibly to strategise on how to go ahead with their own congress. As at the time of filing this report the outcome of the meeting was still being awaited.
The previous layers of congresses, ward and local government, held in Abia were conducted by a seven man Committee led by Hon. Israel Goli with Emenike’s loyalists participating while other camp was said to have done their own.
But Goli had after each of the previous congresses told journalists that his Committee was not aware of any parallel congress in Abia and that the report submitted to the National Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee was the one signed by him and the secretary of the Congress Committee.
Meanwhile a candidate in Emenike’s camp, Mr. Enyinnaya Harbour told THISDAY that they were ready for the state congress, adding that the party members that would participate in the exercise were the delegates elected at the ward congress.
