L
LequteMan
Guest
The Disciplinary Panel, set up by the All Progressives Congress (APC), to look into a petition against the party’s Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Timi Frank, has recommended his suspension and subsequent expulsion from the party.
The five-man committee was setup by the party’s South-South zonal vice chairman, Hilliard Etta, to investigate a petition brought against Timi Frank by Aniekan Akpabio, a member of the party from Akwa-Ibom state. Akpabio accused Frank of making disparaging comments against the party in the media among other things.
The panel recommended that Frank be suspended forthwith, and also asked the zonal executive committee to recommend Frank’s expulsion to the National Executive Committee.
The committee said it had no other option than to recommend his suspension since he shunned an invitation to appear before the panel to defend himself.
Reacting swiftly, Timi Frank dismissed the report.
“I made it clear from the get go that I will not appear before any committee not constituted by respected party members and NEC because such committee lacks legality. Yes, I got (an) invitation letter from the panel but, I made it clear that I would not recognise any committee set up outside the NEC.
“I did not appear before the committee because it is in our constitution that only the NEC can suspend any national officer. Therefore, there is no way I would have appeared before a kangaroo committee set up by the zone…”
“Again, the South-south Vice Chairman of the party lacks integrity to set up a committee to try me. He would have known that I am not a zonal officer and cannot be tried by the committee set up by the zone. My pain is that my party is not wise enough to realise that such move is illegal. Any decision from such committee is not binding on me.
The five-man committee was setup by the party’s South-South zonal vice chairman, Hilliard Etta, to investigate a petition brought against Timi Frank by Aniekan Akpabio, a member of the party from Akwa-Ibom state. Akpabio accused Frank of making disparaging comments against the party in the media among other things.
The panel recommended that Frank be suspended forthwith, and also asked the zonal executive committee to recommend Frank’s expulsion to the National Executive Committee.
The committee said it had no other option than to recommend his suspension since he shunned an invitation to appear before the panel to defend himself.
Reacting swiftly, Timi Frank dismissed the report.
“I made it clear from the get go that I will not appear before any committee not constituted by respected party members and NEC because such committee lacks legality. Yes, I got (an) invitation letter from the panel but, I made it clear that I would not recognise any committee set up outside the NEC.
“I did not appear before the committee because it is in our constitution that only the NEC can suspend any national officer. Therefore, there is no way I would have appeared before a kangaroo committee set up by the zone…”
“Again, the South-south Vice Chairman of the party lacks integrity to set up a committee to try me. He would have known that I am not a zonal officer and cannot be tried by the committee set up by the zone. My pain is that my party is not wise enough to realise that such move is illegal. Any decision from such committee is not binding on me.
