APGA’s founding chairman dumps party, floats UPGA

The founding national chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, has finally dumped the party and formed the United Peoples Grand Alliance (UPGA.)

He had voluntarily halted the leadership dispute in APGA and discontinued all court actions to that effect, after what he described as soul-searching meeting with political associates from the six-geopolitical zones of the country.

Speaking in Abuja where he unveiled UPGA, which he termed a better and more sophisticated political machine, Chief Okorie said the death of the leader of APGA, Chief Emeka Oju-kwu, had sealed the chan-ces of advancing the peace initiatives initiated to resolve the lingering disputes in APGA.

According to him, as it became clear that the time to move on had come, following the demise of Ojukwu, he could not, however, ditch his former party until the completion of the funeral rites of the former Biafran leader.
He carpeted persons who were said to have written a protest letter to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to halt the registration of UPGA and wondered why allegations arose that the new party conflicted with APGA.
“Anybody who is literate up to primary school, who can read APGA and UPGA as well as other acronyms will know that INEC arranges ballot papers in alphabetical order,” he said.
Speaking further, Chief Okorie said the constitution of the new party, UPGA, among other things, would safeguard internal party democracy, level-playing field for all party members, discipline, accountability and periodic change of leadership at all levels through elections.
He further noted that the manifesto of the party laid emphasis on the economic, political and social empowerment of the Nigerian masses in whom Nigeria’s sovereignty resided.
“The ideology of UPGA is anchored on welfarism, liberalism and progressivism,” he said, adding that the leadership of UPGA would soon embark on massive consultation and sensitisation of Nigerians at home and abroad before the formal launching of the party, after it must have been formally registered by the INEC.

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