Labour Party crisis: Apapa insists on planned Bauchi NEC meeting, asks police to arrest Abure
The Lamidi Apapa faction of the Labour Party on Monday said its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting scheduled to hold in Bauchi State on May 3 is “to right the wrongs and illegality of the contempt of court orders perpetrated by Julius Abure whom the FCT High Court restrained from parading himself as National Officers of the Labour Party.”
Newsmen reports that the embattled Julius Abure faction of the party on Sunday described the proposed NEC by Apapa as “illegal, fake and unauthourised.”
A statement by a factional spokesman, Obiorah Ifoh, asked members of the party to ignore the invitations extended to them by Apapa, saying he did not have the powers to summon a NEC meeting, being a suspended Deputy National Chairman.
But, Apapa in a swift response said the NWC of the LP under his watch has invited all the labour party stakeholders to the NEC meeting, including the party’s presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, and the Abia State Governor-elect, Alex Otti.
Apapa stated that elected state and National Assembly members from the party, NWC & NEC members, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) and others have all been invited too.
According to a statement signed by the spokesman of the faction, Abayomi Arabambi, and made available to Newsmen, Apapa recalled that the “NWC had given the Inspector-General of Police and Director General, Department of State Security Service, a leave to arrest and prosecute one Obiora Ifoh an impostor impersonating as the Acting National Publicity Secretary of Labour Party, LP.”
Apapa stressed that Abure and three others have been restrained by the court from parading themselves as National Officers of the Labour Party LP.
Their restrainment, he said, followed police investigation and forensic audit report “that indicted Abure and others for forgery, perjury and criminal conspiracy with financial malfeasance to the sum of over four hundred million naira (N400,000,000.00).”
He said that Abure deliberately committed contempt against the FCT High Court over the restraining orders reportedly issued on April 5, 17 and 20, 2023, by “illegally conducting a Labour Party NEC meeting in Asaba, Delta State on 18th April, 2023 and issuance of illegal appointment letters to states executives etc.”
While tagging the Asaba NEC meeting as illegal, Apapa disclosed that “warrants of arrest have been procured for the arrest of Julius Abure and others” over their indictment for alleged “forgery, perjury and criminal conspiracy.”
He spoke further that: “The NWC has declared as illegal, null and void and of no consequence, the charade conducted by Julius Abure and his criminal gang on 15th April, 2023 during the gubernatorial primaries conducted in Bayelsa, Kogi and Imo states in the 2023 off season elections for November, 2023.
“Abure wittingly and surreptitiously tricked Mr. Peter Obi, Governor-elect Alex Otti of Abia State, Senators, members House of Representatives and states Assembly members elected on the platform of the Labour Party 2023 to commit contempt against the FCT High Court Restraining Order on them.
“The authentic National Executive Council, NEC meeting of the Labour Party has been scheduled for 3rd May, 2023 in Bauchi, Bauchi State by the Alhaji Lamidi Bashiru Apapa led National Working Committee, NWC and there is no going back.
“Obiora Ifoh should be disregarded as his press release is useless and of no consequence amounting to the antics of a buffone.
“The Labour Party under the leadership of Alhaji Lamidi Bashiru Apapa shall continue to operate within the limit of the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as it affects the FCT High Court Restraining Order on Julius Abure and others from parading themselves as National Officers of the Labour Party and in accordance with the Labour Party constitution 2019 as amended.
“The Labour Party NWC led by Alhaji Lamidi Bashiru Apapa has committed itself to reclaiming the stolen mandate of Labour Party, using the Election Manager Situation Room Mobile Application to recover all the missing Forms EC8A littered across the polling units in Nigeria for which Julius Abure couldn’t provide over 42,000 polling units Agents for the 2023 presidential and national elections.
“The matter in FCT High Court bothers on criminality of Forgery, perjury and criminal conspiracy against Abure while the matter in Benin High Court bothers on Abure’s suspension from the ward.
“The resolution from the illegal NEC meeting conducted by Julius Abure on 18th April, 2023 in Asaba Delta State is null and void and all those purported suspended and expelled are voided.”
