Labour Party state chairmen say rumours of crisis handiwork of enemies trying to destroy party

Chairmen of Labour Party in the 36 states of the federation have knocked down rumours of crisis rocking the party both at national and state levels, which they say is the handiwork of enemies and fourth columnists trying to tear the party apart.

The forum made up of 36 state chairmen of the party, at an emergency meeting in Benin, Edo State on Friday, said the rumoured crisis “is nothing but an attempt to truncate multi party democracy in Nigeria.”

The chairmen who passed a vote of confidence on the embattled national chairman of the party, Barr. Julius Abure’s leadership, stressed that they had resolved to support him.

A statement signed by the leader of the forum, High Chief Rotimi Kehinde, described the alleged suspension of Abure as “null and void” as it did not “follow the Labour Party Constitution that provides the SEC in Council the power to suspend or pass vote of confidence on the National Chairman.”

The statement added that the “estraineous personalities from political parties are mainly using few bad eggs who have since left the party to cause disaffection between the party and it’s teeming supporters.”

“These crop of persons claiming to have suspended the National Chairman of our party have long left the party and do not have the right to suspend the National Chairman,” Rotimi said.

“Barr. Julius Abure has put in so much effort to bring the party to limelight and based on that, we are fully behind him as our National Chairman until the expiration of his tenure,” he added.

Also speaking at the meeting, the Edo State chapter Chairman, Comrade Kelly Ogbaloi said the “elements in the opposition parties are sponsoring the alleged suspension as a way to distract the party from recovering it’s stolen mandate in the last general election.”

“Our party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi and the national Leadership of the party are working hard to recover their mandate and would therefore not accommodate any distraction from those who want to discredit Labour Party before Nigerians.

“As leaders in our various states, we are reaffirming our unalloyed support to Barr. Julius Abure as our authentic National Chairman.”

Read also:Labour Party crisis deepens as Lamidi Apapa named acting nat’l chairman

The crisis rocking the Labour Party began when the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, on Wednesday, ordered the National Chairman, Julius Abure, to stop parading himself as the Chairman of the party over alleged corruption and forgery.

Also barred were the National Secretary, Umar Farouk Ibrahim, the National Treasurer, Oluchi Opara, and the National Organising Secretary, Clement Ojukwu.

The President of the court, Justice Hamza Muazu, also ordered that the originating processes of the court be served on Abure and others.

The ruling came shortly after the Edo State chapter of the LP suspended Abure over alleged anti-party activities.

Ruling in an ex-parte application filed by Martins Esikpali John O., Lucky Shaibu, Isah Zekeri, Omogbai Frank, Abkhaiu Aliu, Ayohkaire Lateef, Job Elomah and Dr Abayomi Arabambi through their lawyer, James Onoja (SAN), Muazu held that the application for an interim injunction restraining the four officials by aggrieved members of the LP before the court had merit and granted the same.

“An order of interim injunction restraining the 1st to 4th defendants, their agents, privies, servants, employees and representatives’ whatsoever and howsoever described from parading themselves as the National Chairman, National Secretary, National Treasurer and National Organising Secretary of the 5th Defendant pending the determination of the Motion on Notice,” Justice Muazu said.

The LP leadership crisis was also deepened after some members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), led by the Deputy National Chairman of the party (South) Lamidi Apapa, claimed to have taken over the affairs of the party following the court ruling.

On Thursday, during an emergency meeting of the NWC in Abuja, Apapa declared himself as the Acting National Chairman of the party while Saleh Lawan was named as the Acting National Secretary.

According to Apapa, Abure and the three others must vacate the order of the Federal High Court retraining them before further action can be taken on the leadership issues of the party.

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