Investigation revealed that the Ward party Chairman, Mr. Stanley Onyenwosa and Secretary, Mr. Chukwudi Onokpoma, are engaged in battle of interest which has allegedly divided the ward into two factions.
It was gathered that the Chairman was almost ousted out of office recently over allegations of financial recklessness and highhandedness leveled against him by some members of his executive including the Secretary, Vice chairman, Youth Leader and others, as attempt to resolve the crisis at the Ward level failed.
It was gathered that the State party Secretary, Mr. Obi Nzete-led Panel of Inquiry took over the matter after the Ward could not come to a common ground of settlement where it was amicably resolved by the panel that status quo should remain.
The supposedly resolved crisis took a new dimension on Sunday 13th December 2020, ahead of the election when the Chairman sent a text message of a meeting to strategize the way forward on the selection of the best Councilorship candidates to aspirants and Ward 9 Primary Coordinators scheduled at the private apartment of Mrs. Esther Uduehi, one of the leaders in the Ward.
In a swift move, the Secretary sent same text message of the meeting to leaders, aspirants and Coordinating Team slated at the Ward Secretariat.
The separate text messages obtained by The Story, scheduled for different venues read thus:
“You, as an aspirant, is invited to a meeting with ward 9 primary coordinating team;
Date: Sun 13/12/20
Time: 2pm
Venue: Mummy Uduehi’s Residence, Obiaruku”.
“SIR/MADAM,
I AM DIRECTED TO INVITE WARD 9 PRIMARY COORDINATING TEAM TO A MEETING
TODAY SUNDAY 13TH DEC. 2020
TIME 2PM
VENUE WARD 9/PARTY OFFICE.
SIGNED SEC. WARD 9″.
Contacted, Chairman of the party, Onyenwosa, said: “You know in politics is not a very straight forward system the way you are looking at it. Politics is all about interest but you know the party have modi operandi and one of the Modi operandi is that the Chairman is the head at the Ward. In every level, the chairman is the leader.
“What I want to let you know is that this is a party meeting. In a party meeting, I will instruct the Secretary to call a party meeting but this one is a Committee Meeting of which I am not even the head of the Committee. Now, my job is to inform all parties involve and mobilize them to wherever or whenever the Committee leader wants to hold his meeting”.
He explained that the same meeting at the local government level was ongoing and was not been held at the party secretariat, noting that the person in charge of the Committee decides where would be convenient and secure to hold the meeting.
He argued further that before a meeting is called, the security of the area is put into consideration and the sensitivity of the meeting, pointing out that because of the all-inclusisiveness of the party, members who attend meetings at the party secretariat would not be asked to leave.
Continuing, he said: “I have a right to call a for a Committee meeting which I am part of. Where I called the meeting is where it is supposed to hold. Nobody will begin to tell me whether is proper or not. Committee meeting can hold even in the night. There is no law that says the Committee of the party must hold a meeting inside the party office. The truth of the matter is that you cannot force anybody to do what he doesn’t want”.
According to him, “There is no crisis in the party. It is just clash of interest. We have always seen it this way before but at the end of the day we have our own internal mechanism of resolving whatever difference that you may perceive”.
On allegations of financial recklessness levelled on him which almost cost him his seat, Onyenwosa, hinted: “Your source seems to be coming from one angle and it is unfortunate. It is a bias angle. Like I said earlier on, we have a way of resolving our crisis and by God’s grace, we have resolved but what I am telling you is that there was no issue of financial misappropriation that was levelled against me.
“It was a case of palliative that was been distributed which was not even a party affair and the people who are alleging were even the people who were in charge of the distribution of palliative.
“The money you are talking about, asked them if there is any money in my possession because money stays with the treasurer. So, when they have no access to treasurer because what they want is that any money that comes should be shared and since they have no opportunity of getting the treasurer to share the money, they termed it that the chairman instructed the treasurer not to release the money.
“Meaning that the chairman is withholding the money from them and in the party we don’t share money. That is the truth but like as I said earlier, I hold nobody grudges, we have resolved and the party has gone past that stage now”.
The Secretary in his reaction said: “The two messages are the same, it is just the venue. The Chairman sent the same message of the meeting at Mummy Uduehi’s house and most of our leaders will not attend meeting there because of the faceoff now. So, instead of him to send for it to hold at the party office for everybody to come then we deliberate with the Coordinating team, he sent it hold at Mummy Uduehi’s house and majority of them will not attend.
“So, as the Secretary, I called him, he refused to pick my call and as the Secretary, he is supposed to contact me then we put heads together before we can send such messages. It is my office to send such messages and not his office, he can only direct. It is the same message that I sent telling them that the meeting should be at the party’s office. It is the same people, nobody is exempted but I want the meeting to be at the party’s office.
“When we went to the state secretary, he told us that our meetings should be done at the Ward Secretariat. We have a very big office that can contain the Committee. Why send the message at Mummy Uduehi’s house? Why not the party office? I am not fighting anybody.
“I have told the Ward Chairman, if you want to do anything inform me. The Ward Chairman is among those scattering the party, he does not listen to advise. He knows what is happening in the Ward that majority of leaders will not attend meeting there and you call meeting to deprive others not to come.
“She is our number one leader but many people will not attend the meeting there. They are holding local government meeting now, why did he not hold it there because he knows that many people will not attend. When you see that the coast is not clear, you do the right thing, my own is to make peace, I don’t want trouble”.
Continuing, he said: “Sometime ago there was misunderstanding between the Ward Execitive and the chairman because of greed highhandedness. He called for a meeting at the Ward office where we met and passed votes of no confidence on him and suspended him, so the struggle began till we landed at the State.
“The State Secretary handled the matter, he advised us and asked him to apologize to us. He knelt down and apologized. He did all of us very well because we are all brothers but because of our number one leader, he uses the office to misbehave. The State Secretary advised us that if he is doing anything, he doesn’t have the right to call for meetings, you direct your secretary to call for meetings”.
He noted that the State Secretary told him to return the money in his possession to the right officer which he did. All of us are working together harmoniously now but the thing want to start again because this was how it started. My own is that he should change the venue, let the meeting be at the party’s office, that is just the bone contention”, he stated.
Further investigation revealed that the current misunderstanding is detrimental to the party if not resolved amicably.
