Abuja, NIGERIA — The Enugu State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Barr. Ugo Agballah may have gone into hiding as the Nigeria Police found him liable for forgery and believably has a “skeleton in his cupboard.”
But the police said that Agballah had been on the run and refused to honour the police several invitations.
The account was confirmed by an administration official who also on condition of anonymity said police investigation report has substantiated the allegation that the embattled Chairman fraudulently forged his party documents.
The police had launched investigation into the alleged forgery by Agballah following a petition to the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, on January 20, 2022. by one Mr Victor Offordi Nwankwo, member of the party.
Reportedly obtained on Wednesday was the police investigation report minuted to the Commissioner of the Enugu State Police Command on February 1, 2022, and equally referred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Enugu, for investigation.
According to the report, which is dated 17th May 2023 and signed by ASP Nwosu Athanatius of the State Criminal Investigation Department, Agballah has been “in Enugu, going about his socio-economic and political business, but refused to honour police invitation despite all lawful efforts made by the police invite him to the station.
“Such deliberate refusal by Mr. Ugochukwu Agballah to honour police invitation defines him to be unpatriotic, lacks integrity, unreliable, and probably has skeleton in his cupboard.
“Such character of Mr. Ugochukwu Agballah could prompt a prudent person out there, particularly the complainant, to conclude that he is above the law, untouchable, and above government.
“Justice would be achieved through useful information from members of the public, particularly his party members, on his whereabouts”, the report stated, assuring that “he is still hunted by the police.”
Recall that the complainant, Nwankwo, had petitioned the police in January 2022, saying that the APC had commenced the registration and revalidation exercise for both old and new members, which lasted from 25th January to 31st March, 2021 in Enugu State.
The report said: “On 26th July 2021, Mr. Ugochukwu Agballah came to their APC Secretariat, met their chairman, Dr. Ben Nwoye, and other numerous members, declared his intention to defect from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to APC.
“During the occasion, the APC Chairman have him broom and their party constitution to study as well as advised him to wait until new registration starts at the ward level.
“The petitioner further stated that in October 2021, Mr. Ugochukwu Agballah started brandishing forged APC membership registration slip as well as Udi Agbudu ward register of members and resumed campaign (for the position of the state chairman of the party), claiming to have been fully registered by APC; and that the membership slip was cloned from old, discarded registration slip used by APC in 2014/2018 registration exercise.
“The complainant concluded that the suspect (Agballah) attached the forged documents.”
On efforts to get Agballah to report to the police, the police report stated that an “affidavit to obtain a Warrant of Arrest was sworn and Warrant of Arrest of Agballah Hycinth Ugochukwu was obtained.
“Notwithstanding, a letter of invitation dated 22nd March 2022 was served on him through his gateman on 23rd March 2022. Yet, he did not honour the invitation of this office.
“Another follow-up letter of invitation dated 27th July 2022 was served on him though his gateman on 28th July 2022, but he failed to honour (it).
It was also revealed that Agballah’s was invited by phone calls and messages, “yet he took to playing the police”, adding that “Every effort of this office made to invite him failed at his instance without reasonable cause.”
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