There was an air of suspense on Saturday as the Executive Chairman of Ughelli North Local Government Area, Olorogun Jaro Movudu Egbo, was conspicuously absent at the inauguration of the All Progressives Congress, APC, campaign and election management committees for the 11 wards of the council, opting instead to attend a burial ceremony in Agbarha-Otor, Delta State.
The APC inauguration, held at Oharisi Primary School, Ughelli, was part of the party’s preparations for the 2027 general elections, with a target of securing over 100,000 votes in the local government area.
While the party’s campaign leadership, stakeholders and newly appointed ward coordinators assembled for the exercise, Egbo was at Ibru College Field, Agbarha-Otor, where he attended the burial ceremony of late Pa John Umudjere Oreakporhere.
The council chairman’s absence came as the party formally inaugurated its campaign structures across the 11 wards, charging members to intensify grassroots mobilisation and work towards a 5/5 victory in the forthcoming elections.
Chairman of the Ughelli North APC Campaign Committee, Chief Fred Majemite, who presided over the inauguration, urged the newly inaugurated committees to deploy effective mobilisation strategies, insisting that the party had enough achievements to convince voters without electoral malpractice.
Similarly, Coordinator of the Campaign and Election Management Committee, Hon. Samuel Marierie, charged ward coordinators to develop community-specific strategies to ensure effective voter engagement and electoral success.
However, the circumstances surrounding Egbo’s absence generated some curiosity, particularly as two different explanations emerged over his whereabouts.
While the Executive Chairman was reported to have attended the burial ceremony of late Pa John Umudjere Oreakporhere at Ibru College Field, Agbarha-Otor, on the same day, APC Chairman in Ughelli North, Olorogun Lucky Ofomukoro, offered a different explanation at the party gathering.
Addressing newsmen on the council chairman’s absence, Ofomukoro said, “Though the council chairman is not here with us, he is with us in spirit.”
He further explained that the council chairman had an emergency meeting with the state governor, which accounted for Egbo’s absence from the inauguration.
The conflicting accounts of the council chairman’s whereabouts could not be independently reconciled as of the time of filing this report.
Against this backdrop, it could not be immediately ascertained whether Egbo’s absence had any political undertone or was purely a matter of conflicting official engagements. Neither account, however, established any rift within the APC in Ughelli North.
The report of Ughelli North Council Chairman attending a burial ceremony with photos, were culled from the the Facebook page of one his Media Aides, Mr Erhomeada Efemena.
