Nenadi Usman, chairperson of the Labour Party (LP) caretaker committee, has dared Julius Abure to go ahead and reveal whatever secrets he claims to have, in response to his recent threats against key party figures.
She issued the challenge during an interview on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, while speaking about the ongoing leadership crisis within the party.
Julius Abure, the factional national chairman of the Labour Party, had earlier this week made strong claims against key party figures, including Peter Obi and Abia State Governor Alex Otti. He accused them of dishonesty concerning funding during the 2023 elections and warned that he would release damaging information if pushed.
“I am waiting for them—from top to bottom—to make any other move and I will open my mouth,” Abure stated. “And when I open my mouth, wherever they go, they will be like smelly eggs, rotten eggs that nobody will ever buy.”
Usman responded by daring Abure to follow through. She said the Labour Party has already filed reports about Abure’s conduct, some of which are currently being looked into by law enforcement.
“Well, I am challenging him to expose us. If you have anybody to expose, you don’t go and talk now, you go and expose them,” Usman said. “We have a lot of things about him and that is why the people whom he did it to went to the police. The police are investigating him and very soon you will hear about it.”
She also noted that the crisis is deeper than just personal conflicts, describing it as an attack on the party’s internal democracy. “Generally, you would agree with me that every democracy needs to have a vibrant opposition,” she said. “So when the opposition wants to become part of the ruling party, then there’s a problem. And that is where we are today.”
Usman argued that Abure’s leadership term had expired and that the caretaker committee was only acting on the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) instruction to fill the gap. She recalled that Abure was even asked to leave a meeting with INEC officials after his tenure ended.
“Principally, the Labour Party leadership at some point had issues with INEC because the tenure of Abure and his NWC had come to an end,” she noted.
While Abure took legal action and briefly won in a lower court, the Supreme Court later ruled against him, stating that the lower courts had no authority to interfere in the matter.
Quoting the judgment, Usman said, “Justice Okoro even went on to advise that ‘please, leaders, when your tenure comes to an end in an office, please kindly leave honourably.’”
Despite this, Abure’s name remains on INEC’s website, something Usman described as a result of a court order, not an election. She added that the LP’s national executive committee had formed the caretaker committee to prepare for a fresh round of elections at all levels.
She also made it clear that Abure could run again if he chooses to. “Even Julius Abure, if he still wants to remain chairman, he could go through the election,” Usman said.
“But he doesn’t want to go through election — his NWC, they don’t want to go through election. They just want to be using the courts to remain as leaders. I think that’s not good for opposition.”
