WARRI – As the jostling for the replacement for the Warri South 1 Constituency seat in the Delta State House of Assembly continues , a Rights activist and chieftain of the All Progressives Party Congress. (APC) , Robinson Ariyo said that until a legal state executive of the party is put in place, the party might risk not fielding a candidate in the forth coming bye-elecion.

Ariyo, who was the All Progressives Congress (APC) flag bearer in the 2015 election for the position of the member representing Warri South Constituency 1 in the Delta State House of Assembly, and now an aspirant in the bye – election scheduled for April 26,2017 ,decried the illegality and lack of respect for the party’s constitution that has pervaded the sate chapter of party,

The Warri South constituency 1 seat became vacant following the death of Hon. Omawumi Udoh of the People’s Democratic Party(PDP) in 2016.

Addressing a press conference in Warri, the legal practitioner said that, “there is a very ghastly constitutional crisis in the APC Delta State, capable of excluding APC from participation in the 2017 Warri South Constituency 1 Bye-Election”.

He insisted that, “the Jones led exco proceeded to commit political suicide when it filed suit No: FHC/WR/CS/165/2 Ors Vs. APC and 3 Ors” and “instead of achieving their aim of escaping the judgment, they incidentally ended up shooting themselves in the foot by violently violating a fundamental provision of the APC constitution”.

Ariyo averred that a situation where members of the party act in ways and manners that contravenes the party’s constitution was no longer acceptable.

“One development which we may be unable to tolerate at all is the current dictatorial oligarchy in the APC, Delta State Chapter”, adding….“any member who files an action in court of law against the party or any of its officers on any matter or matters relating to the discharge of the duties of the party without first exhausting the avenues for redress”, as purportedly violated by the Prophet Jones Erue leadership face “automatic expulsion”.

He added that by virtue of the partys constitution, Prophet Jones and his crew are no longer supposed to be in the possession of any property of the party, including the party register and nomination forms which will be used in the next bye-elections in the state.

Ariyo said the Delta APC has consistency failed to obey a court order that pronounced the Prophet Jones Erue led executive as illegal, adding that unless the national executive body of the APC puts in place an ad -hoc committee to midwife the process of the bye- election and take further neccesary steps to sanitize the party in the state,the APC will loose its respect in Delta state.

“Without a valid state executive, we cannot have a legal primaries. That means,APC is automatically out of the Delta State House of Assembly bye -election.”

Ariyo while lamenting the polarisation of the Deltan APC , urged the APC to put their house in order by immediately obeying the court judgment and accordingly ,conduct a new congress before the forth coming bye-election, adding that if the APC continues to act as if its hands were tied ,they would be insensitive to the fact that the All Progressives Congress ,APC -led government of President Muhammad Buhari was elected on the strength of adherence to the rule of law and renunciation of any form of lawlessness

On whether he was still in the race, APC Chieftain said that his constituents are his priority and not desperation to contest under the present legal imbroglio.

He added that , if the national body does not do the needful and entrench legality by appointing an interim executive, series of litigation might just be imminent.

He observed that since 2015, he has written series of letters to the APC National Working Committe(NWC) but up till now,the party has not done anything adding that ,haven exhausted all internal mechanisms within the party ,he was left with no other choice than to take the party to court for violating its own constitution.

He stated that the only options open to the Jones led Exco are: withdrawing the action from court, make an appeal to the executive committee of the party, then the National executive committee of the party will then consider the appeal one way or the other.

Ariyo who has been in the forefront of the crusade for the observance of the rule of law and respect for the party’s constitution for the past two years,however said he will not quit the party in spite of what is going on saying he will stay to fix the party.