The All Progressives Congress (APC) has removed its Southsouth zonal chairman, Victor Giadom, who is an ally of a former Transport Minister, Chibuike Amaechi.
The party in an extraordinary meeting held in Port Harcourt at the weekend also fired the zonal Secretary, Chief Ita Udosen.
A document containing the resolution of the meeting showed that while Giadom was immediately replaced with Blessing Agbomhere, Udosen’s position was taken over by Chief Edet Ita Asia in acting capacities.
Persons, who signed the resolution were Agbomhere, Asia; Zonal Legal Adviser, C. ogbuobodo; Zonal Youth Leader, Ebimowei Oyas and Zonal Woman Leader, Cynthia Princewill.
The two party leaders were removed in line with sections 13, 25, 14 and 21 of the party’s constitution.
The party accused Giadom of refusing to call for meetings and scuttling every effort to gather together to transact the political business of the zone.
The party said: “The Zonal Chairman has refused to make use of the Zonal Office of the party situate at no 46a, Orogbum Street, GRA, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and has frustrated every attempt of any member(s) to use the office for the efficient running of the zone’s political activities.
“The Zonal Chairman has consistently refused, aborted and frustrated every effort to hold meetings, to coordinate and strategize on how to win the general elections in the zone, and caused members of the zonal Executive Committee disunity and frustration in their personal efforts to winning votes for the party, and this affected the collective performance of the party at the zone.
“The zonal Chairman has bluntly refused accepting or receiving complaints and petitions from the states that make up the zone, while sabotaging every effort to make the zonal party secretariat operational and functional in the interest of all the members of the party in the zone, leaving members and leaders in the zone to resorting to self help, thereby encouraging intra-party disputations. “The zonal chairman refused to account for the funds remitted by the national body to the zonal body and donations from party’s faithful for the running of the affairs of the zone.
“In consideration of the aforementioned reasons, we hereby pass a vote of no confidence on him as the zonal chairman and he is hereby removed as the Zonal Chairman of the zonal Executive Committee of the party”.
The party also slammed similar allegations on Udosen saying he refused to call for meetings, operate the secretariat of the party among others.
The party said: “That after due deliberation, and in our committed effort to reorganize the party in the Southsouth Zone, we the undersigned Zonal Executive Committee members passed a resolution whereby members nominated and appointed Dr. Blessing Agbomhere as the Acting Zonal Chairman (South-South) whereas Chief Edet Ita Asia as the Acting Zonal Secretary in conjunction with their present positions.
“It is also hereby resolved that all the petitions, complaints and correspondence should henceforth be forwarded to the Southsouth APC Liaison Office at APC Secretariat, Murtala Mohammed Highway, Calabar, Cross River State”.
But the Zonal Public Relations Officer of the party, Mr. David Okumgba, said there was no meeting at the address quoted by party leaders, who claimed they had removed Giadom and Udosen.
“I was at the party secretariat on the day they claimed they held that meeting but there was no such meeting. There is no way a resolution will emerge from a meeting that did not hold. We appeal to members of the public to discountenance the communique”, he said.