Victor Umeh is an Expired Politician, Says Gov Orji's Aide

By O Nwachukwu
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The Abia State Government has lambasted the National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Sir Victor Umeh, describing him as a “desperate man” and a “seat-tight chairman of APGA”.

Reacting to the attack on Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State by Umeh on his two day visit to the state recently where he (Umeh) said that the governor sabotaged President Goodluck Jonathan during the March 28 presidential and National Assembly elections, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Charles Ajunwa, has said that the statements by Umeh hold no water as his boss was transparent and worked according to the dictates of the electoral policies.

Ajunwa has said that what matters is that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) did not lose in the state during that election. He added that Umeh perhaps had wanted the governor to rig the election, but the governor was not a rigger of elections; he canvassed votes for the president and the PDP won in the state.

The state government has warned Umeh to desist from politics of blackmail and brigandage. The highlight of this, Ajunwa has said that at no point was the governor and President Jonathan or his wife were in antagonism. He reiterated that the governor and the president and the national body of the PDP share a bilateral relationship.

Ajunwa has however warned Umeh to cover his face in shame, saying that with the entire boast by Umeh to win the senatorial seat of his constituency, he was beaten hands down by a woman. “Umeh is an expired politician who could not even win in his ward in the last election,” said Ajunwa.

Ajunwa went memory lane, telling Nigerians to be weary of Umeh, whom he accused of coveting the chairmanship of the APGA through conspiracy, from Chief Chekwas Okorie since 2003. “It is on record that Okorie was known as the founder of the APGA, but Umeh through a hi-tech conspiracy removed Okorie through the court of law, for the reason that Umeh was gluttonous for the position,” Ajunwa said.

It is also on record that Umeh has operated the APGA like a garrison commander, said Ajunwa. He cited media reports, “The heat for the chairmanship was intensified in 2012, when Umeh and Maxi Okwu were craving to nominate the party's governorship candidate for the November 16 poll in Anambra. Okwu who was then in court was praying that he should be recognised as the authentic chairman of the party, till January 15 2014, when the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court sacked Umeh from office and directed the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to without-delay, recognise Okwu, as the chairman of the party. Before the victory came in favour of Okwu, the party operated like different opposition political parties, with numerous court judgments recognising them at dissimilar times. The last, but not the least, was a Court of Appeal, ruling in support of Umeh. Today, the court ruling did not go the way of Umeh and, he has regarded the judgment as a kangaroo type.

“Umeh then said that the ruling was fraud; he is bent on not heeding to the ruling, hence he is calling on all not to adhere to the court ruling. But when it was a long encounter between Okorie and the forces that hijacked the party who were vehemently in support of Umeh, they were jubilating when an Abuja High Court ruled against Okorie in an appeal Okorie instituted challenging the decision of an Abuja High Court, and the tussle came to an intimidating end on 13th January 2010, as a Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, delivered its judgment against Okorie.

“Umeh did not see the judgment then, as fraud. He jubilated around and said that the judiciary has risen to the occasion in delivering of its judgments. Besides, it is on record that Umeh was one time expelled from APGA and, the party never granted him pardon till date, except that he was using the court to challenge that.”

Ajunwa has said that Umeh knows how to give a dog a bad name in order to hang, which was the fate that Okorie suffered in his hands. “Today, the APGA has lost its heralded staunch status, because of the greedy nature of Umeh, who has “been in the fight for the position of the National Chairman of the APGA, since 2004”, bringing all manner of embarrassment to the party.”

“A failed politician that Umeh is, his hungry self will not allow him to leave the “leadership of the party for progressivism to reign in the party, as Court has sacked him times, and reinstates Okwu as APGA substantial national chairman”, yet, Umeh is seat-tight.”

Media reports are that, “From the look of things, Umeh was not a good representation of APGA. The proof is that under Umeh, APGA did not make any headway, except in Anambra State. If not that Dim Odumegwu Ojukwu was involved in the APGA politics, which gave the party respect, especially in the South-East zone, the party would have been dead long. Come to think of it, just one state that the party which Umeh-led controlled, yet there was no peace in the party.”