The Chairman of the Kogi State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Hadi Ametuo, and other members of his executive have been expelled from the party.
The Acting state Chairman of the party, Alhaji Ibrahim Ahovi, announced the expulsion of Ametuo and others during a press conference in Lokoja on Friday.
Ahovi, who is leading a faction of the party loyal to Governor Yahaya Bello, said the expulsion was with immediate effect.
According to him, the action became necessary following Ametuo’s failure to appeal the decision of the North Central Zonal Executive of the party which had earlier pronounced him guilty of anti-party activities and recommended his expulsion to the national body.
He said that Ametuo-led executive failed to appeal the decision within 14 days as stipulated by the constitution of the party, saying that the failure to abide by the provision meant consent.
Ahovi said that the party would not hesitate to get Ametuo arrested and charged with impersonation should he fail to stop parading himself as the state chairman of the party.
The factional chairman, thereafter, inaugurated other new state executive members of the party to replace those expelled.
Ahovi, was until now the state Vice Chairman of the party.
He condemned the recent formation of a body, Save Kogi Group, saying that members of the group were only out to cause disaffection, disunity, hatred among the people of the state.
However, in his reaction to the announcement the embattled chairman described his purported expulsion as illegal and unconstitutional.
Ametuo, who spoke to journalists on phone from Abuja, said that the faction led by Ahovi was not known to the National Working Committee of the party.
He described members of Ahovi faction as “political jobbers who are only out to frustrate the ongoing efforts to reconcile aggrieved members of the party nationwide.
Ametuo said that the faction was not also conversant with the constitution of the party, saying that state working committee has no power to expel but to suspend which is also subject to the NEC ratification.
The Chairman advised members of the party to remain calm and be law abiding, saying that the action of the faction should not be seen as an opportunity to aggravate the crisis in the party.
