Chief Victor Oye, National Chairman of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) has described his suspension by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party as null and void.
Oye said this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka on Tuesday.
He said it had become a tradition in the party that each electioneering period, some people would want to steer trouble to cause confusion for personal interests.
Oye reassured APGA faithful that he remained the national chairman of the party and urged members to disregard the announcement, describing it as inconsequential.
His suspension came barely 24 hours after the party cleared the former Governor of the Central Bank, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo and three others, while disqualifying five other aspirants from the party’s June 23 governorship primaries.
“It’s what we see in every primary election, so am not perturbed. If this were in more civilised climes, these people will be arrested and jailed.
“There is a procedure and you have to give INEC a notice to be able to convene a meeting of a National Working Committee (NWC). It is the chairman of National Executive Committee that convenes NWC. So, my purported removal is laughable and rubbish.
“These people do not exist and I am surprised that people are giving it publicity. What they did is media sack. Those people do not exist and they should be dealt with,” he said.
The APGA NWC on Tuesday announced the suspension of Oye and appointed Mr Jude Okeke as acting National Chairman of the party.
Rising from its 114th NWC meeting in Abuja, the party said six other members were suspended including, Chief Chinedu Obidigwe, Mr Hamman Buba Ghide, Mr Sylvester Ezeokenwa, Mr Adamu Danjuma Musa, Chief Uchenna Okogbuo and Mr Ifeanyi Mbaeri.
It said the members were suspended indefinitely for alleged anti-party activities, gross misconduct and conduct capable of bringing the party’s image to disrepute among others.
It maintained that the NWC had nullified the disqualification of five aspirants from the Anambra governorship election, stating that the disqualification was done without the authority of the party, adding that it had extended the sale of governorship nomination forms to June 25 and the primaries rescheduled for July 1.
NAN