ABIA PDP: GUBER ASPIRANT THREATENS NWODO OVER DISSOLVED EXCO

A gubernatorial aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abia state, Chief Reagan Ufomba, has threatened to initiate contempt proceedings against the party and its principal officers. he premised his threat on the failure of the party leadership to restore the dissolved abia State Executive Committee of the party in compliance with the order issued by an Abuja High Court.

Justice Kekemeke U.P had on Wednesday last week restored the executive committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abia State, which was dissolved by the Okwesilieze Nwodo-led leadership of the party last week.

The dissolution was done by Nwodo in fulfillment of the conditions given to the party by the Abia State Governor Theodore Orji for his re-entry into the party.

But angered by the development, Ufomba dragged the party and its national leadership before the court.

Joined in the suit, which was filed by counsel to the plaintiff, Paul Eshiemomoh were, Nwodo, the party National Vice Chairman, South East, Olisa Metu, and Chidi Okereke.

The Court was invited to issue an order, directing the defendants to maintain the status quo pending the hearing and determination of the pending suit.

Justice Kekemeke, in the order, directed all the parties in the suit to maintain the status quo pending the hearing and determination of the suit before him.

The suit was adjourned to August 16 for the hearing of both the preliminary objection and the motion on notice.

But Chief Ufomba, who expressed worry that the leadership of the party might likely disobey the court order, had threatened to initiate contempt proceedings against the party.

According to him, 'I fear that the party hierarchy at the national level may work against the order of the court but I can assure you that i will do everything legally possible to ensure that the order is complied with.' It would be recalled that Nwodo had on Wednesday last week announced the dissolution of the Ndidi Okereke-led committee over what he described as 'flagrant violation of our constitution, abuse of office and disobedience of lawful directives which has precipitated crises and fractionalisation of the party.'

But Okereke and leaders of the party in Abia state argued that there was no truth in the allegation made by the national leadership of the party in dissolving the executive committee.

He said when it became clear that the party national leadership was bound to carry out the dissolution to satisfy the governor, they served another process of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory on the national chairman and some other national officers of the party, dealing with the party state leadership.

Okereke expressed shock that the new national leadership of the party, which swore to keep to the tenets of rule of law and due process, decided to unilaterally dissolve their executive without ever issuing them a query nor engaged them in any dialogue over the matter.

He warned that if the action was not reversed, then the national leadership of the party would be inviting anarchy into the PDP fold in the state, which he pledged they had worked hard to keep together.