The leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed report and speculation that its 2019 governorship candidate in Enugu state, Ayogu Eze was under suspension.
The party also said its membership has risen from 63, 000 to 184, 294 registered members in Enugu state.
Addressing a press conference Wednesday in Abuja, Enugu state chapter Caretaker Committee Chairman Dr. Ben Nwoye, dismissed all the accusations of anti-party activity levelled against the former governorship candidate.
Nwoye said: “So, it came to my notice that a former Chairman who had been removed may have connived with people and started peddling falsehood, fake news that the distinguished Senator has been suspended from the party. So, this is not true. This is pure falsehood, sponsored news item that is only meant to finish the already risen profile of the senator.
“Yesterday we saw reports in a section of the media misinforming people that the distinguished Senator Ayogu Eze was suspended from the party. That cannot be further from the truth. The distinguished Senator Ayogu Eze is a well respected member of APC in Enugu State and indeed South East and at the national level. He joined the party and he ran for Governorship, got the ticket and because of his popularity has taken the party to greater heights.
“Very recently, he received a vote of confidence based on what he had done to grow the party beginning with most recently, our membership registration. His efforts cumulated into tripling the number of registered members of APC in Enugu State. We have independent people who could verify that. The chairman of the registration committee for the state, distinguished Senator Jonathan Zwingina was in Enugu State and he hosted him and other members of the committee. He made sure we had a great turn out of members.
“Before that, during the pandemic, Sen. Eze donated immensely to our purse making it possible for the outreach which we did in 2020 and early 2021. We were able to procure relief materials and visited hospitals, homes for the elderly, disabled and orphans. He also regularly provided for members of the party.
“His caretaker executive of the ward had duly removed him according to our constitution. The fact is that his own caretaker executives passed a vote of no confidence against him unbeknownst to Sen. Eze or anyone including myself. They brought a letter that following the due process, they had removed him and brought in another gentleman, Comrade Obeta as Chairman of the Ward. Sen. Eze has no hand in whatever happened to the former Chairman. It was the handiwork of mischief makers to embarrass him.
“As of the time he wrote the letter purportedly suspending Sen. Eze, he was no longer the Chairman of Ozzi, Ward 7. We have 260 wards and 17 local governments in Enugu State. So, one out of 260 rushed down somewhere to Abuja and engaged fake news merchants. It was a hatchet job and we won’t allow that to stand because we have grown this party to this point.
“I have reached out to the national secretariat and other leaders and I have not been able to find out who identifued this individual as Chairman of Ozzi Ward 7.”
On the recent recent registration and revalidation exercise in Enugu state, Dr. Nwoye said “Through the help of the leadership of Sen. Ayogu Eze and other leaders, we have risen from 63, 000 to 184, 294 registered members. These are real members and not made up.”
