Tensions within the Labour Party have intensified following a Supreme Court ruling that has stirred confusion and fresh power struggles among party stakeholders.
On Sunday, the faction loyal to Julius Abure, the embattled National Chairman of the Labour Party, responded to an alleged threat of invasion by calling for increased security presence at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja. Two police vans and a number of officers were seen guarding the premises, with sources confirming that both police and private security personnel were stationed at the entrance.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, confirmed the move was prompted by concerns over a possible forceful attempt to take over the headquarters. He stated that the measure was necessary in the wake of the recent Supreme Court verdict, which some factions are allegedly interpreting to justify a leadership change.
Labour Party’s National Secretary, Umar Ibrahim, raised alarm in a public statement, claiming that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and a caretaker committee led by Nenadi Usman were mobilizing to forcibly gain access to the secretariat.
Ibrahim further alleged that this planned action was backed financially by Abia State Governor Alex Otti and another unnamed senior party figure.
He said, “We view this (planned) action as irresponsible and evidence of desperation by the NLC. The laws of the Labour Union forbid them from partisan politics, which they did on different occasions in the past when they mobilised miscreants to desecrate the party headquarters and vandalise the properties.
“It must be noted that the judgment of the Supreme Court delivered on April 5 is very clear and unambiguous. The judgment simply mandates political parties to always resolve their crisis using internal mechanisms. There is nowhere in the judgment that gave the NLC or the caretaker committee the power to take over the leadership of the Labour Party.”
“There is a leadership in place in the Labour Party, and Julius Abure, who was validly elected at a convention held in March 2024, still remains the National Chairman of the Labour Party. Any attempt to forcefully usurp the present leadership will be resisted.
“We are, by this statement, calling on the attention of the security agencies, including the police, and the DSS, among others, to ensure that any activity that is capable of breaching the peace of the FCT must be nipped in the bud and that the masterminds, no matter how highly placed they might be, are apprehended and made to face the full wrath of the law,” he stated.
The party insisted that Julius Abure remains the legally elected National Chairman following a convention in March 2024 and warned that any attempt to remove him would meet resistance. Authorities, including the police and Department of State Services (DSS), were urged to prevent any disruption to public peace and act against anyone attempting to take the law into their own hands.
Meanwhile, Tony Akeni, spokesperson for the Nenadi Usman-led faction, dismissed the allegations of an invasion plot. He described the claims as paranoia and accused the Abure camp of projecting their own intentions onto others.
He said, “The allegation is of a criminal nature. But as (popular novelist) James Hadley Chase says, the guilty are afraid and they flee when no man is pursuing them. Perhaps they are acting reverse psychology on what they would have done if they were in our position.
“These people are intentionally criminal in mind and nature. Let us get this thing straight, it is a case of an illegal tenant in an apartment who has exhausted hos stay, legally and otherwise. Even the Supreme Court has ruled that Abure is not in any position to put himself as the National Chairman of the Labour Party based on that veŕidct.
“If they are wise and law-abiding, after the judgment, what they should have done is to put their luggage together and hand over the key to the caretaker committee chairman, Nenadi Usman. But if they refuse, of course, we have no option but to flush them out and take over our possessions. But it will be done lawfully.”.
Akeni argued that Abure’s group should have stepped aside after the court’s decision and handed over the party’s assets to the caretaker committee. While admitting they may move to reclaim the secretariat, he assured it would be done through legal means.
The Supreme Court’s decision last Friday nullified a previous ruling by the Court of Appeal which had supported Abure’s leadership. The apex court maintained that internal party issues fall outside the judiciary’s purview and cannot be adjudicated by the courts. It also noted that Abure’s tenure had expired, thereby invalidating his continued stay in office.
Reactions to the verdict have varied. Senator Neda Imasuen, representing Edo South, expressed support for the ruling. Speaking in Benin, Imasuen described the Labour Party’s internal crisis since the 2023 elections as regrettable and blamed Abure for failing to uphold the party’s unity.
He said, “Sincerely, I welcome the Supreme Court’s judgment that sacked Barrister Julius Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party.
“A lot has gone on in the Labour Party after the 2023 general elections, and it is very unfortunate. So, Abure who was the chairman at the time, in my opinion really didn’t have the party at heart because it has become a personal thing.
“It became something that didn’t really matter to them, and it was like let’s fight and tear the party into pieces instead of preserving it. That sort of thing was not what I expected from someone who led the party at a time. And, so he has been dragging the party in and out of court and now that the Supreme Court has finally sealed it, so be it . It’s a welcome development.”
