APGA convention: Oye returns as national chairman

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance ( APGA), Chief Victor Oye was on Friday returned to the office to pilot the affairs of the party for another four years.

Chief Oye was re-elected to the office along with all the other National Executive Committee members of the APGA by the delegates at the party’s National convention held under tight security at the Professor Dora Akunyili Women Development Centre, Awka, the Anambra state capital by voice vote.

Also, the Anambra state governor Chief Willie Obiano was retained as the APGA National leader and Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) with the wife of the late national leader of the party, Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu, as well as the first son of the former Biafran leader, Chief Emeka Ojukwu (Junior) among the 36 members of the APGA BoT ratified during the party’s Convention.

Others named as APGA BoT members included, former Central Bank Governor (CBN), Professor Charles Soludo, candidate of the party during the February 23, 2019, Presidential election, General John Gbor (rtd), former National chairman and Secretary of the party, Senator Victor Umeh and Alh. Sani Shinkafi respectively, Hajiya Hawai Funtua, Prof. David Bamigboye, Hon. Ben Nwankwo, Hon. Anayo Nebe, Dr Uju Okeke, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume, Dame Virgy Etiaba, Sola Odedeji among others.

ALSO READ: JUST IN: Eid-Fitri: FG declares Tuesday, Wednesday public holiday

Among prominent members of the party who were conspicuously absent at the convention were Senator Victor Umeh, widow of the late national leader of the party, Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume and Chief Alex Oti who was recently suspended by the party leadership

In his speech, Governor Obiano expressed satisfaction with the conduct of the party’s state primaries and the National convention and urged all the party’s national Executive members, delegates at the convention and other members and supporters of the party to work hard for the growth of the party.

“Today our great party, APGA is the Third largest political party in the country, if we work hard we can leapfrog APGA to the First largest position”, Governor Obiano charged members of the party.

Earlier in his acceptance speech, the party National Chairman, Chief Victor Oye pledged that his leadership was committed to the growth of the party, assured that they would not abuse the confidence reposed on them.

He stated that all the money generated during the last primaries of the party which he said was the sum of N1.3 billion was intact in the party’s account in the bank, and, pledged that his leadership would strive to build a National Secretariat of the party in Abuja, the nation’s capital lamenting that the party had been a squatter in the area since 2006.