Like SDP, Labour Party denies involvement in PDP-led coalition

The Labour Party has dismissed claims on its planned involvement in a coalition led by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, made the clarification in a statement on Saturday in Abuja.

He was reacting to speculations that the LP has been holding talks with some opposition parties on the coalition arrangement.

Seven parties led by the PDP came together earlier in the week to form the Coalition of Concerned Political Parties (CCPP) in Abuja.

Other parties in the arrangement are the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Social Democratic Party (SDP), Young Progressives Party (YPP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).

The parties came together to provide a strong opposition and alternative solutions to policies initiated by the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government.

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) on Friday distanced itself from the arrangement.

In the statement, Ifoh said the promoters of the coalition movement did not approach the LP leadership.

He said: “There was news in the media that a group of seven opposition political parties formed a new coalition tagged the Coalition of Concerned Political Parties.

“As was noticed, Labour Party was not represented at the meeting in question and therefore couldn’t have been part of the coalition as suggested by the publication.

“The publication we can confirm quoted one of our officials out of context by giving a false impression that Labour Party endorsed the coalition.

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“We have continued to posit that the Labour Party is still undergoing a post-mortem of the 2023 general elections. Until after the exercise, we will not be in a hurry to join the fray of any political arrangement.

“However, we will continue to participate in select meetings of like minds where issues arising from the last general elections are discussed with intentions to propose plausible solutions to developments that are threats to our democracy.

“Labour Party is interested in leading discussions on electoral reforms in Nigeria. We would like to find a lasting solution where a President of Nigeria with a population of over 200 million emerge with less than 9 million votes and less than 10 percent of registered voters.

“Labour Party is also interested in finding a lasting solution to a situation where the courts have usurped powers of the electorate.

“It is frustrating that after all the stress involved in elections on the sides of both the candidates and the electorate, and after securing electoral victories at the polls, 3 or 5 individuals gleefully upturn the verdict of the people on the altar of some unfounded technicalities. That is not what democracy preaches.”

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