By Bolaji Buhari
The Lagos State Chapter of the African Alliance Congress (AAC) said on Sunday that it would not recognise Mr Leonard Nzenwa as the national chairman of the party.
The Publicity Secretary of the party in the state, Mr Elias Ozikpu, expressed the position in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
He was reacting to the reported sacking of Mr Omoyele Sowore as National Chairman by a convention of the party on Aug. 9 in Owerri and the subsequent naming of Nzenwa as new chairman.
Sowore, also presidential candidate of the party in the 2019 elections and 28 others were reportedly expelled for alleged anti-party activities and insubordination at the convention.
The AAC presidential candidate is currently being held in connection with the recent #RevolutionNow march, he spearheaded.
Nzenwa, while speaking after the programne, condemned the #RevolutionNow march by Sowore and others, saying AAC did not sanction the protest.
He promised that the party would have a new lease of life under him, accusing Sowore of working against the interests of the party and Nigerians.
But Ozikpu has described Nzenwa as an impostor, saying that Sowore remained the AAC national chairman.
He said the convention in which Sowore was purportedly expelled and Nzenwa announced was a ‘kangaroo arrangement” by those hell-bent on hijacking the party.
Ozikpu pointed out that Nzenwa had earlier been expelled from the party at a recent convention in Abuja, saying there was no way the Lagos AAC and genuine members would recognise him as chairman.
”Nzenwa is not the chairman of the party. We don’t recognise him in Lagos AAC and genuine members of the party don’t recognise him as chairman.
”Our chairman remains Mr Omoyele Sowore and that is the leader we all know. Nzenwa is just an impostor, who just wants to hijack the party and that is why he and others went to Owerri to announce the expulsion of Sowore.
”But the questions to ask are: why Owerri? Is Owerri the headquarters of the party? Who and who were at the so called convention where he was announced as chairman? The whole thing was a kangaroo arrangement.
”We had our national convention recently in Abuja and the same Nzenwa was expelled by the party while a vote of confidence was passed on Sowore. So Nzenwa can’t claim to be national chairman.
”The national secretary of the party is putting a disclaimer in newspapers to counter Nzenwa’s claim. He is not our chairman and we don’t recognise him.”
Ozikpu urged members to keep faith with the party and remain loyal to Sowore even with his current travail.
He described AAC as the party of the people with the main objective of having a country that would work for all.
