The chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Cross River State, Alphonsus Eba, has accused some chapter chairmen and secretaries of embezzling over ₦60 million belonging to the party.
Eba made the allegation while reacting to a communiqué issued by a group of aggrieved chapter chairmen under the aegis of the Forum of APC Chapter Chairmen and Secretaries, who had earlier called for his resignation over alleged mismanagement and high-handedness.
The forum, led by Kelvin Njong, the Boki Chapter Chairman, had yesterday in Calabar accused the state chairman of diverting party funds, neglecting grassroots structures, and running the party like a private business.
However, reacting in a WhatsApp chat with our correspondent, Eba dismissed the allegations as false and politically motivated, insisting that the same leaders calling for his resignation were the ones responsible for misappropriating funds meant for ward and chapter executives.
“They embezzled monies meant for ward executives and some chapter executives running over ₦60 million. They must come and give account for that,” Eba said in a telephone interview.
He explained that the state executive discovered irregularities in the handling of funds by some chapter leaders, who, according to him, had been collecting dues and stipends from appointees but diverting them for personal use.
“Chapter chairmen collect local government appointees’ dues of more than ₦4 million monthly and squander the money without taking care of other executives at the chapter and ward levels. They also collect ₦3.6 million from some quarters and mismanage it, creating an unfair salary structure in excess of what state executive members earn,” he alleged.
Eba further stated that his administration had introduced a transparent payment system that channels stipends directly to the accounts of all 5,778 party executives across the state, adding that salaries for the 17 chapter chairmen were being withheld pending the outcome of investigations into the alleged fraud.
“We now pay all party executives directly into their accounts, and we have paid them up to date. But the 17 chapter chairmen’s salaries will not be released until they clear themselves of the fraud allegations,” he said.
He maintained that no chapter chairman or forum has the power to call for the resignation of the state chairman, stressing that disciplinary measures would soon be taken against those involved in the alleged misconduct.
“No chapter chairman has the power to call for the resignation of the state chairman or state executive committee members. On the contrary, the state executive committee has full powers to discipline and sanction them, and this will be done immediately,” he added.
