Enugu APC Vows to Secure Freedom for Jailed Labour Party Candidate
In a shocking turn of events, Bright Ngene, the Labour Party candidate for the Enugu South Urban State Constituency, has been sentenced to a 7-year jail term by a magistrate court in Enugu. The Enugu chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has vowed to do everything in its power to secure Ngene’s freedom and ensure justice is served.
Ngene’s election was annulled by the Appeal Court, and a rerun was ordered. However, three previous attempts to hold the rerun failed to yield fruit. The sudden twist has left many questioning the motives behind Ngene’s imprisonment.
Barrister Ugochukwu Agballah, the chairman of APC in Enugu State, expressed dismay at the judgement, stating that Ngene was sent to jail because he wanted to recover his mandate. Agballah alleged that there was a plan by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) cabal to stop the Labour Party candidate from actualizing his mandate.
"We are going to do everything to make sure that justice is done in the matter and whoever, no matter how highly placed that has a hand in this miscarriage of justice, will be brought to justice, because nobody is above the law, including judicial officers," Agballah vowed.
The APC chairman also hinted that the matter would be taken to the zonal leadership of APC and to President Bola Tinubu. He disclosed that the party would appeal the judgement and would not accept a rerun of the election in the absence of the jailed Labour Party candidate.
The leadership of the Labour Party in Enugu had also kicked against the jail term handed to Ngene, and the party has written the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to suspend the planned rerun election in Ngene’s constituency to avoid giving the ruling PDP an advantage as a result of the judgment.
The situation has sparked widespread outrage, with many calling for Ngene’s immediate release and an end to what they see as political persecution. As the situation unfolds, it remains to be seen how the Enugu APC and the Labour Party will proceed in their efforts to secure Ngene’s freedom and ensure justice is served.
