By Anayo Okoli
Umuahia — PEOPLES Democratic Party, PDP, in Abia State, yesterday, held a congress to ratify appointed members of the Senator Emma Nwaka-led Caretaker Committee that had been running affairs of the party in the last four months.

No new member was elected into the committee as all members of the caretaker committee were returned unopposed.

But while the congress was going on at Umuahia Central Stadium, the aggrieved group of PDP members, led by Chief Ben Etie, which is loyal to Chief Ikechi Emenike and which has a court case pending against the dissolution of the former leadership of the party, leading to the appointment of the caretaker committee which was ratified yesterday, dismissed the congress as a ruse.

In a press statement signed by Chief Ben Etie and Chief Egwuatu Egbulefu, the faction, which regarded itself as the authentic Abia State PDP, reminded the people that the dissolution of the leadership of the party in the state was “illegal, null and void and of no effect whatsoever as the dissolution is already a matter in Court of law”.

“We wish to let PDP members in Abia state know that the proper and authentic executive committee of PDP in Abia state did not fix any congress in the wards, local governments or state.

There is no need for any congress in Abia state as the congress which elected state executive is intact and their tenure which started in 2008 would terminate in 2012” the statement said.

However, at the congress which was witnessed and supervised by Chief Olisa Metu, the party’s vice chairman in the South East was conducted by Chief Andy Aghadi with seven other members of the electoral committee.

Governor Theodore Orji, his deputy, Acho Nwakanma participated in the congress. Very few members of the National Assembly, including Senator Nkechi Nwogu and Chinye Ike were sighted at the congress.

However, to ensure that the congress qualifies as a congress, the chairman of the election committee, Aghai ensured that some people were nominated who however later withdrew for Nwaka. He also insisted that there must be voting because “PDP do not allow people into offices without election”.

“Though all of you are being returned unopposed, but the election must go on as planned as our great party do not give room for unopposed election. We do not want people to turn around the next day to say that there was no election, so the election must continue as scheduled”, Aghaji said.

According to him, the party and the election committee want to ensure that Abia state has peaceful and transparent party congress that will usher good party officials that will oversee the affairs of the party henceforth.

The people returned unopposed include the party chairman, Senator Nwaka, his deputy Allen Nwachukwu, the party secretary Charles Esomonu and all other party officials that constitute complete state executive committee of the party.

In his acceptance speech, Nwaka thanked the Abia PDP members for the confidence reposed in him and his team, and for standing behind him during the period he acted as the party chairman, and promised that he will never disappoint them throughout his tenure.

Nwaka called on all aspirants of the party who are seeking for elective positions to go out and sell themselves to the electorates, pointing out that there will be no automatic ticket for any aspirant as it is against the party rules and regulations.

“All aspirants in our great party the PDP should go out and sell themselves to their electorates, we do not have room for automatic ticket. It is only the people who you intend to serve or represent that can determine your fate and not the party executives”, Nwaka said.

He also advised them to conduct themselves in an orderly manner during campaigns, elections and after, and to base their campaigns on issue and not to on character assassination of their opponents.

The congress was witnessed by the new INEC Resident Electoral Commission in the state, Mr. Austin Okojie, who described the congress as being orderly.