The All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, Abia State chapter, has given Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, representing Abia South, 24 hours to clear air over his alleged fraternity with the coalition African Democratic Congress, ADC, or face sanctions.

APGA in a statement after its caucus meeting in Umuahia on Tuesday night, told the former Senate Minority Leader that nobody would belong to two political parties at the same time, and demanded him to declare his stand.

APGA accused Senator Abaribe of abandoning the party and treating its leadership with disdain after using the party’s platform to secure a fifth term at the red chamber.

The statement signed by the party’s Publicity Secretary, Chukwuemeka Nwokoro, said that Senator Abaribe held meetings on August 18, and September 23 respectively at his event centre in Aba where he allegedly promoted ADC instead of APGA, and challenged him to personally confirm or deny his rumoured defection to ADC.

But in a swift reaction, Abaribe’s media aide, Uchenna Awom, said the party knew how to access the Senator as its leader in the state, and should stop dwelling on rumours.

He said it was unfair for the party to issue an ultimatum to the Senator based on unverified rumour without hearing from him, and advised them to stop acting “on subterfuge”.

Awom said:”Senator Abaribe is alive. As APGA leader in Abia, the party has all the channels to access him. He doesn’t have any issues with them. They should write to him and personally hear from him.”

Asked if Abaribe had truly defected to ADC, the aide said: “As an experienced politician, he knows how to go about it.”

He added: “Has he communicated to them that he has left APGA? They don’t just sit down and do arm-twisting to get words out from his mouths.”