The Abia State chapter of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) has given Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, representing Abia South, 24 hours to clarify his alleged links with the African Democratic Congress (ADC) or face disciplinary action.

In a statement released after its caucus meeting in Umuahia on Tuesday, APGA accused Abaribe of abandoning the party after winning his current Senate seat on its platform. The party alleged that the senator had been promoting ADC during meetings at his event centre in Aba on August 18 and September 23.

APGA further cited comments by the Abia ADC secretary on a radio programme claiming that Abaribe is a card-carrying member and leader of the party in the state—a claim the senator has not publicly refuted.

The statement, signed by APGA Publicity Secretary Chukwuemeka Nwokoro, stressed that no individual can belong to two political parties simultaneously and warned that sanctions would follow if Abaribe fails to issue a public denial within the ultimatum.

Responding, Abaribe’s media aide, Uchenna Awom, dismissed the claims as “rumours” and described the ultimatum as unnecessary. He said the senator remains the leader of APGA in Abia and urged the party to engage him directly.

“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 him and personally hear from him,” Awom said.

When asked if Abaribe had defected, Awom replied: “As an experienced politician, he knows how to go about it. Has he communicated to them that he has left APGA?”

Abaribe, a former Senate Minority Leader, was first elected in 2007 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), where he won re-election in 2011, 2015, and 2019. He defected to APGA in 2023 and secured a fourth term in the Senate.