December 07, (THEWILL) – A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr Emeka Kalu, has described the alleged expulsion of Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere from the party in Imo State as a joke, which should be treated with a pinch of salt.
Kalu, who is also the National Coordinator of PDP Coalition in Nigeria, expressed dismay at the attempt by some people in PDP in Imo State to further put the name of the party in disrepute despite the attempt to rebuild it.
Kalu in a statement he personally signed on Saturday, and made available to THEWILL, also described the purported dismissal of Ugochinyere as a fraudulent act, which must not be allowed to stand.
THEWILL recalls that the PDP in Imo State, in a letter signed by Lancelot Obiak, its Publicity Secretary, on Friday, expelled Ugochinyere, a House of Representatives member for Ideato North/South Federal Constituency of Imo State, from the party by the Umuopia/Umukegwu Ward Chapter of the party in the state.
The party in Imo had claimed that Ugochinyere was expelled from PDP due to gross indiscipline, insubordination, and anti-party activities.
Kalu insisted that Ugochinyere had remained the most committed federal legislator elected under PDP in fighting the gross injustice, sabotage and political prebendalism hampering the unity of the party.
Rather than sack, he insisted that Ugochinyere should be commended for standing by the party at all times.
He insisted that this alleged sack, amounted to bias and political immaturity that guided some sections of the party in the state.
He said: “At a time the party is gradually working towards rebuilding her broken walls, some persons who failed to see the realities of power tussles in political leadership took to fraudulently abuse processes by raising their ill-fated pen to publish Ugochinyere’s expulsion from the party he has continued to give his best for.
“A party that has been captured by the enemies within with all readiness to destroy it should concentrate on fighting to retrieve its glory from the hands of traducers than resorting to fight a man who has never relented in working to ensure the party is robustly strengthened.
“It is a show of shame that while the party at the national level is battling conflict of interest and sabotage within the party structure and those who are bent on ensuring these wrongs are corrected, became the victims of circumstance orchestrated by his haters who think their interest are no longer protected.”
The PDP National Coordinator, therefore, called on the national leadership of the party, to as a matter of urgency, intervene by reversing the decision of the state, maintaining that a stakeholder like Ugochinyere deserved more recognition and honours for his unwavering commitment to ensure the party was vehemently united.
He declared that the central organ of the party must not treat this issue with levity if PDP was to stand the test of time.
Besides, Kalu totally condemned the issuance of the expulsion letter, warning that this action may lead to eventual collapse of PDP.
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
