Ogoja APC vice chairman resigns, citing neglect, exclusion from council duties, and failure of party leadership to honour commitments
Ogoja APC vice chairman Emmanuel Yakubu has resigned from the All Progressives Congress, citing prolonged marginalisation, exclusion from council activities, and frustration with party leadership in Cross River State.
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In a public letter released on Wednesday, Yakubu accused the Chairman of Ogoja Local Government Area, Chris Agbeh, of operating a one-man administration that disregards the roles of other elected officials, including the vice chairman himself.
He said his decision stemmed from “a complete breakdown of internal cohesion” within the local government leadership.
“I have served as Vice Chairman of Ogoja Local Government — a position afforded me by the APC — with full dedication, both emotionally and financially. Sadly, my supporters and I have been continually sidelined in the party’s activities and decision-making processes,” Yakubu stated.
He narrated a string of grievances, including being denied access to his official quarters and having to pay for hotel accommodation out of his own pocket since assuming office.
Yakubu also alleged he was excluded from executive council meetings, committees, project planning, and appointments.
“Not once has an executive council meeting been held. Everything is done without my input as Vice Chairman. It’s been a complete show of exclusion,” he said.
I will not allow my followers to be used and discarded. I must move forward with those who believe in inclusion, accountability, and service.
Yakubu further recalled an incident involving the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), where he was appointed to lead a committee on an irrigation project.
According to him, Chairman Agbeh publicly rebuked and sidelined him, despite the project falling squarely within his responsibilities.
“In October, before our election, I paid for his CROSIEC forms. He promised to refund me the same day, but till now, not a kobo has been returned. Even the money he borrowed after our inauguration remains unpaid,” Yakubu revealed.
The Ogoja APC vice chairman said his grassroots mobilisation efforts, especially in PDP-dominated Urban Ward II, went unrewarded and unsupported.
“I almost collapsed the PDP in Urban Ward II, yet the burden of sustaining that structure fell solely on me.”
He warned that continued neglect of party loyalists at the grassroots would further erode public confidence in the APC.
Despite leaving the party, Yakubu pledged loyalty to Governor Bassey Otu, applauding his administration’s achievements and promising to work for the governor’s re-election regardless of his future political alignment.
“I will not allow my followers to be used and discarded. I wish the APC well, but I must move forward with those who believe in inclusion, accountability, and service,” he said.
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As of press time, neither Chairman Agbeh nor the APC leadership in Ogoja had issued any official response to Yakubu’s resignation or the allegations contained in his letter.
