Post election trauma: Confusion as LP leaders fight dirty over positions
…Party NWC declares replacement
…Embattled Chair cries foul, accuses APC of attempt to inaugurate “illegitimate executive”
…Call your party to order from suffocating political structures in Nigeria – He tells Buhari
…NLC faults court judgement on sack of party executives
…Says it is meant to decapitate leadership to weaken party
…Vows to storm court with members
By Moses Adeniyi
Aftermath of the 2023 general elections which have rattled major political parties with the woes of party leadership crises further deepened in the bloc of the Labour Party (LP), with the structure of the party threatened with factional divisions.
The crisis rocking the LP deepened on Thursday as seven members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Party, announced the National Vice-Chairman (South), Lamidi Bashir Apapa, as the acting National Chairman to replace the suspended Chairman, Julius Abure.
The leadership crisis wrangled the structure of the party leading to police officers taking over the secretariat of the party in Abuja on Thursday.
Speaking after an emergency meeting held at the party’s secretariat in Abuja, Apapa said the NWC members acted on the judgement of the Federal Capital Territory High Court which restrained Abure from parading himself as the National Chairman of the LP.
The Court had restrained Abure, and three other key officials of the party, including the National Secretary, Umar Farouk Ibrahim; the National Treasurer, Oluchi Opara; and the National Organising Secretary, Clement Ojukwu from parading themselves as executives of the party over alleged forgery.
The presiding judge, Justice Hamza Muazu of the FCT High Court also ordered that the originating processes of the court be served on the restrained officials.
The judge held that the ex parte application for an interim injunction restraining the four officials by aggrieved members of the LP before the court has merit and granted the same.
Apapa who was appointed acting chairman to replace Abure told journalists that the NWC also reviewed the suspension of party members and executives that had earlier been suspended by the party leadership.
The three other officials restrained by the court were also replaced by Alhaji Saleh Lawal- acting National Secretary, Rowland Daramola – acting Treasurer, and Prince Reuben Favour – acting Organising Secretary.
“The NWC equally reviewed that recently there are some cases of suspensions that were badly handled. And this National Working Committee meeting has reviewed them, and the suspension all over are hereby reviewed and the officers are reinstated.
“With effect from now, the so-called officers who the court had barred should not parade themselves as officers of the party until cases against them are treated or handled by the partypart,” Apapa stated.
He also denied the allegation that the party has been invaded by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), saying the current leadership believes extensively in the presidential candidate of the party, Peter Obi.
…Embattled Chair cries foul, accuses APC of attempt to inaugurate “illegitimate executive”
On his part, Abure had in a statement, raised allegation against the APC of using thugs and a detachment of the Police Force to invade the party’s headquarters in Abuja.
The embattled LP chairman stated that the invaders who are armed reportedly pulled down the fences, burglaries, doors and windows to have access to the secretariat and in the process sacked workers and party executives.
“Though, I was out of town but information has it that the agenda of the invaders was to inaugurate an illegitimate executive which has been chosen for them by their sponsors.
“This incident is coming days after a similar invasion in our Imo state Secretariat which up till now is still being occupied by the agents of the Imo state government.
“Only yesterday (Wednesday), our presidential candidate, Peter Obi through the LP Presidential Campaign Council alerted Nigerians of a plot to hound him out of the Country over APC’s covert plot in collaboration with some security agents to frame him up allegedly on matters bothering on treason.
“Labour Party is only a political party which is contesting for power. The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC has conducted an election that ranked us third, a position we have rejected and have approached the Tribunal to contest. That is our only offence.
“We, therefore, call on President Muhammadu Buhari to call his party, the APC to order and also rein them in from using unorthodox means to suffocate political structures in Nigeria.
“Few minutes ago, the national headquarters of the Labour Party in Abuja witnessed massive attack and was broken into by a detachment of the Nigerian Police and thugs believed to be working for the All Progressives Congress, APC.
“A court of competent jurisdiction only yesterday ordered that I, Julius Abure remain the National Chairman, and should not be restrained from performing my duties, it therefore baffles me why the Nigerian Police should allow itself to be used to perpetrate illegalities.
“We advise the Police, APC and their sponsors to play by the rules. We will no longer tolerate the often intimidation and deployment of brute forces against the party and their personnel.
“We demand they put a stop to abuse of power and respect the rights and privileges of other political parties, particularly, the Labour Party to contest for power.”
There was confusion within the ranks of the party on Thursday with the invasion of the National Secretariat at Utako by a faction accompanied by Policemen to take control of the structure.
…NLC faults court judgement on sack of party executives
Meawhile, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), an affiliate of the Labour Party has described the sacking of the party leadership including the National Chairman, the National Secretary, National Treasurer and the Publicity Secretary of the Party, by the High Court, FCT, in Abuja as an attempt to decapitate the leadership of the party and weaken it.
The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Joseph Ajaero, in a statement in Abuja, on Thursday, said the sacking of the Executives of the party was a calculated attempt and suspicious.
The Labour union argued that it cannot be far from the intent to weaken the party from within or distract it from its fight to reclaim its stolen mandate at the polls.
The NLC in its statement said the allegations of corruption, perjury and forgery on which the Judge based his ruling on the application were unfounded, unproven and highly speculative, moved by elements whose interest, in the party, it said, could best be described as doubtful or dubious.
The NLC said that the judgement was meant to decapitate the leadership of the party with the suspected intent to weaken the party from within or distract it from its fight to reclaim its victories at the polls.
The statement reads: “We are alarmed by the decision of Justice Hamza Muazu of the High Court in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja via exparte to suspend from office the National Chairman, the National Secretary, National Treasurer and the Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Messrs Julius Abure, Alhaji Farouk Ibrahim, Clement Ojukwu and Opara respectively on unfounded/unproven and highly speculative and malicious allegations of corruption, perjury and forgery by elements whose interest in the party could best be described as doubtful or dubious.
“The court order according to Justice Hamza Muazu is to subsist pending the hearing and determination of a motion on notice for interlocutory injuction.
“The ruling was sequel to a motion exparte filed along the substantive suit by eight so-called aggrieved members of the party including the Chairman of the party in Abure’s ward.
“We view the decapitation of the leadership of the party with great suspicion which cannot be far from the intent to weaken the party from within or distract it from its fight to reclaim its victories at the polls.
“In light of this, we urge the courts to exercise utmost caution in entertaining frivolous suits and spurious prayers from mercenary party members as they are capable of compromising the integrity of the courts.
“We similarly join the league of those who canvass against the casual use of exparte in light of the grieviouness of the injuries they quite often inflict.
“We also note that this extant court order does not only violate the principle of presumption of innocence, a cardinal pillar of our judicial system, it is an affront to justice itself. We find it curious that while ex-convicts continue to occupy ample space in the public service or space without let or hindrance, those yet to be found guilty are already being harangued or hounded are being debarred from holding office.
“Finally, the continued relevance of our courts cannot be divorced from the quality of their decisions or rulings. Accordingly, our courts are advised to refrain from taking decisions which portray them as having descended into the arena, or worse still, make them pocketable.
“On our part, the grounds for suspending the quartet, either in the courtroom or outside it, are not there even as mischievous forces orchestrate evil. The quartet, therefore, remain executives of the party. In light of the foregoing, we invite the honourable court to review its decision forthwith.
“On the next adjourned date we are going to be in court in our numbers to listen to the Judge.”
The party leadership crisis which has struck the LP is coming at a time it is struggling to establish balance amidst a legal battle it is fighting against the outcome of the presidential election to claim victory at the court, having said it was cheated in the presidential polls.
Meanwhile amidst the struggles, its presidential candidate in the last general elections, Peter Obi, has been brought into allegations levelled against him of inciting violence, with specifics laid of attempt to treason by the Federal Government.
Obi who has faulted the Government’s position, describing it as malicious, Wednesday night had said that there was pressure on him to leave the Country.
He accused the ruling APC and some government agencies of trying to divert the Country’s attention from the infractions that marred the just concluded general elections.
He said they are doing this by raising unfounded allegations against him, using a viral audio recording he described as ‘fake.’
He had said, “The present attempts by the APC as a party, and the APC led-government through some government officials and agencies to divert our attention from our blatantly stolen mandate is unfortunate and sad.
“These have come and continued to manifest in different ways, such as the malicious accusation of the Minister of Information, Mr Lai Mohammed, the circulation of a fake doctored audio call, and a pressure on me to leave the country.
“Let me reiterate that the audio call being circulated is fake, and at no time throughout the campaign and now did I ever say, think, or even imply that the 2023 election is, or was a religious war.”
The aftermath of the General Elections have seen Political Parties in the Country brought under the storm of leadership crises. There have been series of suspension and expulsion of party bigwigs over alleged anti party activities, among other interest based contentions.
The use of court injunctions have been employed in some quarters to oust party leaders as the crises deepen, while other pending suits are still before the Court.
Barely nine days to LP’s Thursday’s shaking, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had a chunk of the display of ousting party leaders as the party NWC announced the ousting of Senator Iyorchia Ayu as the party National Chairman and his replacement with the National Vice-Chairman (North), Umar Damagum, as the acting Chairman of the PDP.
Ayu’s replacement trailed an order of the court restraining him from parading himself as the National Chairman of the PDP, having been suspended from his Ward.
