By Uchenna Ezeadigwe
Awka
The National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has reaffirmed Senator Emma Anosike as the recognised chairman of the party in Anambra State and directed all aggrieved members to withdraw pending court cases and embrace reconciliation to restore unity ahead of future elections.
The resolution was announced on Tuesday in Awka by the APC Deputy National Chairman (South), Dr. Benjamin Obi Nwoye, who led the party’s National Fact-Finding and Reconciliation Committee to a stakeholders’ engagement themed “Domesticating Peace at the Grassroots.”
The meeting, held at Chiben Leisure Resort and Hotel, Awka, brought together party leaders, stakeholders, ward executives, women and youth leaders, as well as representatives of the various factions involved in the crisis that followed the party’s governorship primary election in March.
The committee identified disputed party structures, alleged controversial candidate substitutions, prolonged litigation and claims of disciplinary actions without due process as the major factors fueling the crisis in the Anambra chapter of the APC.
Addressing participants, Nwoye said the engagement marked the transition from dialogue to implementation following an earlier reconciliation meeting in Abuja, stressing that the objective was to translate the peace initiative into practical solutions across wards and local government areas.
According to him, the success of the reconciliation process depends on its acceptance at the grassroots, noting that ward executives, local government officials, women and youth leaders, and polling unit officers remain critical to the party’s electoral success.
“We are not gathered to reopen old wounds but to deepen the peace that began in Abuja. Politics is local, and any peace that does not reach the grassroots is incomplete,” he said.
Presenting the committee’s resolutions, Nwoye disclosed that the National Working Committee had adopted its recommendations and formally recognised the Senator Emma Anosike-led State Executive Committee as the legitimate leadership of the APC in Anambra State.
“We recognise the state leadership of the party led by Senator Emma Anosike as the chairman, and the party is putting measures in place to harmonise and accommodate other interests so that peace can be restored,” he said.
He further disclosed that although legal disputes involving the party remain pending, the national leadership had taken steps to preserve the existing party structure by appealing the court judgment affecting the state executive and securing a stay of execution pending the determination of the appeal.
Nwoye urged members involved in litigation to withdraw their cases, insisting that internal disagreements should be resolved through dialogue and the party’s dispute resolution mechanisms rather than prolonged court battles.
“We agreed that people should withdraw all litigations because they lead the party nowhere. There must be discipline in our party. Whether we like it or not, the supremacy of the party must prevail,” he stated.
He warned that the party would no longer tolerate actions capable of deepening internal divisions, insisting that strict adherence to the APC constitution and internal regulations was non-negotiable.
“I am not here to massage anyone’s ego. I am here to read a riot act. Throughout this reconciliation process, anyone who constitutes himself or herself into a troublemaker will be treated accordingly. We are one family, and everyone must conduct themselves responsibly,” he warned.
Nwoye explained that the committee considered several options, including dissolving rival structures, but resolved instead to retain the existing leadership while creating room for inclusion and accommodation of all interests.
He also reaffirmed that, in line with the APC constitution, the party’s governorship candidate in the last election, Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu, remains the recognised leader of the APC in Anambra State, while his running mate, Senator Uche Ekwunife, serves as deputy leader.
Describing grassroots members as the foundation of the party, Nwoye said elections are won at the community level and warned that internal disunity would undermine the party’s electoral prospects.
“Elections are won in communities, markets, churches, villages and polling units. A divided party weakens its own electoral prospects,” he said.
He urged party leaders to reopen channels of consultation, encourage honest dialogue and ensure that aggrieved members were given a sense of belonging.
According to him, any reconciliation process that fails to reach ordinary members at the grassroots would leave the APC vulnerable to further division, misinformation and manipulation.
Nwoye assured stakeholders that all submissions made during the engagement would be documented and forwarded to the National Working Committee to guide the implementation of an inclusive reconciliation framework.
The APC National Woman Leader, Dr. Mary Alile Idele, described the exercise as a fact-finding and peace-building mission aimed at resolving disagreements threatening the party’s fortunes in Anambra State.
“There is a serious issue before us, and that is why we are here. We have not come to run away from the problem; we have come to extinguish the fire,” she said.
Quoting the biblical admonition that “a house divided against itself cannot stand,” Idele urged members to respect the supremacy of the party and place the collective interest above personal ambitions.
Also speaking, the APC Deputy National Secretary, Prof. Abdulkarim Abubakar Kana (SAN), said the committee had completed extensive consultations with stakeholders and remained committed to achieving a lasting resolution of the crisis.
He added that the reconciliation process would promote greater inclusion and ensure recognition for members who had remained loyal to the party despite its internal challenges.
The APC National Legal Adviser, Barrister Murtala Aliyu Kankia, and the National Leader of Persons with Disabilities, Hon. Tolu Bankole, also urged members to sustain dialogue, noting that reconciliation requires compromise, mutual respect and teamwork.
Responding on behalf of the state leadership, Senator Emma Anosike welcomed the intervention of the National Working Committee and pledged the commitment of the Anambra APC leadership to implementing the committee’s resolutions.
He assured members that the party would engage aggrieved stakeholders, promote an inclusive leadership structure and work towards rebuilding unity ahead of future elections.
A former state chairman of the party, Chief Basil Ejidike, also appealed for genuine reconciliation, warning that no faction could independently achieve electoral success without unity.
The reconciliation mission led by Dr. Benjamin Obi Nwoye included the APC National Woman Leader, Dr. Mary Alile Idele; Deputy National Secretary, Prof. Abdulkarim Abubakar Kana (SAN); National Legal Adviser, Barrister Murtala Aliyu Kankia; and National Leader of Persons with Disabilities, Hon. Tolu Bankole.
