A member of the All Progressives Congress, Offor Okorie, has expressed disapproval of the recent move by the former speaker of Abia State House of Assembly, Chinedum Orji, and his supporters to join the party.
It was reported by NewsNow that Chinedum Orji officially joined the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) on Tuesday and obtained his APC membership card from the Abia State Chairman, Kingsley Ononogbu.
Prior to this, Enyinnaya, son of former Abia State Governor Theodore Orji, had resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party, citing internal issues within the party as the reason for his decision.
In reaction to the influx of former PDP members into the APC, Okorie stated in a Wednesday statement that this would strengthen the party for future elections. However, he reminded the defectors that the APC is a national party with established procedures for defection and registration.
The State Publicity Secretary of the APC criticized the manner of Orji’s defection, emphasizing that party registration should be carried out at the ward level in accordance with the party’s constitution. The Secretary highlighted that defectors must follow the proper processes and not simply fill out a form in an office to declare their membership.
He further pointed out that the national party officers and key stakeholders were unaware of Orji’s defection, learning about it through social media. While welcoming defections from the PDP, he stressed that adherence to the party’s constitutional guidelines is essential.