Abia APC leadership crisis escalates as thugs sack court

Hell was let lose, Wednesday as hoodlums took over the entire Abia state high court sitting at Okpuala Ngwa premises, blocked the two entries into the court and caused pandemonium.

That court was the venue for a case between two factions of the All Progressives Congress (APC) which has been engulfed in leadership tussle with Hon Donatus Nwankpa as chairman of a faction while Dr Emmanuel Ndukwe leads the faction recognized by the court as the authentic leadership of Abia APC.

Trouble started when a bus load of thugs arrived at the court premises and discharged hefty looking men some wearing masks and armed with guns and machetes, while the other people suspected to be party thugs screened people entering the court room to ensure that only APC members belonging to the faction led by Hon Donatus Nwankpa were allowed into the court.

Some of the hoodlums positioned along the road leading to the court intercepted people from the opposing faction, beating them and inflicting machetes wounds on several of the people in the opposing camp, even as the state publicity secretary of the Dr Ndukwe led faction,

Engr Mike Ozoemana was beaten black and blue while his Toyota 4-Runner jeep was seized by men who claimed to be from the State Anti-Robbery Squad, alleged to have been called by those that brought the thugs.

The Abia state high court was to continue the hearing of an ongoing case to determine the authentic state executive of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The presiding judge, Justice Collinton Okoroafor was forced to stay away from the court as pandemonium reigned took over thereby scuttling the hearing of two motions, one each from the plaintiffs and respondents.

The judge was billed to hear the motion filed by Hon Nwankpa and other respondents seeking to transfer the case to another court, and another motion filed by the plaintiffs seeking to nullify every action taken by Nwankpa after the court had issued an order sacking him from office.

The presiding judge, Justice Okoroafor had in March 8, 2018 issued an order restraining Nwankpa from parading himself as the chairman of Abia APC pending the determination of the case brought against him by aggrieved party members.

The then national chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun was also restrained from recognizing Nwankpa as chairman.

Instead of making attempts to vacate the court order, Nwankpa had described as the order as “kangaroo court order and a nullity” and on June 28, 2018 when he failed in his bid to obtain an extension of time to file application to vacate the order, Nwankpa further described the affirmation of the earlier restraint order as “judicial rascality”.

Sensing an attempt to pervert justice, the Dr Ndukwe led APC later petitioned the Abia State Judicial Service Commission, SJC calling for thorough investigation of the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the case file.

They had urged the SJC to investigate the chief registrar of the state high court, Mr. Benson Anya and senior registrar at the high court in Okpuala Ngwa, Mr. E.E. Nwogwugwu for “connivance” in removing the case file “without due notification of the, consent and approval of the presiding judge, Hon Justice C.U. Okoroafor”.