By PERPETUAL ONUEGBU
The Labour Party (LP), which surprised many in the last general elections and brought so much hope of a viable third force to Nigerians, has become notoriously unstable; no thanks to power tussle by its gladiators.
Nonetheless, LP is not alone on this trajectory; there is hardly a major political party without its internal wobbling and bickering, be it the party in power or opposition parties.
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the major opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), among others, are all embroiled one tango or the other.
Political analysts are, however, concerned that LP’s lingering and deepening internal crisis may consume it.
The crisis started as the battle for the ownership of the party; then cascaded into a fierce leadership tussle leading to allegations of financial impropriety.
As a result, there have been endless litigation, suspension of national and state stalwarts, and picketing of the party’s national headquarters in Abuja by the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
There is also the controversy over the national convention of the party, where its factional national chairman, Mr Julius Abure and the majority of the National Working Committee (NWC) members were re-elected.
The party today seems to be torn between two camps struggling to be in control.
On one hand are the 2023 presidential flag bearer, Mr Peter Obi, and the only elected governor of the party, Dr Alex Otti of Abia, who are opposed to the Abure-led NWC.
The duo, with some other party leaders, held a stakeholders’ meeting in Umuahia, Abia, on Sept. 4, 2024 and appointed Sen. Nenadi Usman as the Chairman of a 29-member Caretaker Committee to organise another convention to elect new leaders.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), joined by Usman and two others, filed a suit against the Abure-led NWC questioning its right to lead the party.
However, two appellant courts sitting in Abuja ruled in favour of the Abure-led NWC, saying matters of party leadership were solely the responsibility of the party.
Also, the Appeal Court affirmed the Abure-led NWC as rightful leaders of the party.
Recently, in a dramatic turn of events, the Supreme Court threw out the judgment of the appellant court affirming Abure as the national chairman on the grounds of lack of jurisdiction.
The apex court also added that the courts had no right to intervene in party leadership affairs.
Owing to that judgment, both camps of Obi and Abure claimed victory over the verdict of the apex court; both interpreting the judgment to suit their cause.
While Obi and Otti called for a stakeholders’ meeting, Abure organised a meeting of all the statutory arms of the party attended by members of the NWC.
The meeting was attended by national officers of the party, state chairmen and secretaries, party stakeholders, and other co-opted members of the National Executive Committee, as provided for in Article 13a of the party’s constitution.
The meeting came up with several resolutions, among which is the condemnation in strong terms of the activities of the Usman-led caretaker committee, urging it to respect the party’s constitution.
The resolution, which was read by the party’s National Secretary, Alhaji Farouk Ibrahim, noted that Article 14.4b gave power to call meetings only to the National Secretary with the approval of the National Chairman.
“NEC in session noted the various anti-party activities of Governor Alex Otti, including calling on authorised stakeholders’ meetings, resolving the powers of NEC, and conducting local government elections under the platform of another political party.
“NEC-in-session stated that it would not hesitate to discipline him, in line with Article 19 of the party’s constitution. NEC-in-session hereby resolved its power to NWC to discipline the party leaders.
“NEC-in-session, in exercise of its intensity, hereby cautions the former presidential candidate of our great party, Obi, to stop participating in any activities capable of undermining the peace, unity, and integrity of the party, as NEC will not hesitate to issue steeper penalty if found,” Ibrahim said.
The embattled chairman, Abure, responded to questions about what would become of the party in the Anambra election and the 2027 elections.
Abure said the LP was a welfarist party with the main focus of protecting the interests of the people, adding that the party would field candidates who would promote the party’s agenda.
Meanwhile, the Usman-led NCC held a counter-stakeholders’ meeting two days after the Abure meeting.
At the meeting chaired by Otti, the content of the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Supreme Court judgment on the party’s leadership dispute was read to the public.
Otti, speaking at the NEC meeting and expanded stakeholders’ summit, announced that the court affirmed Usman’s leadership.
“The Supreme Court has affirmed that the plaintiffs (Usman and others) were right in their appeal and went further to admonish politicians to respect the tenures of office as stipulated in their respective political party constitutions,” Otti said.
He also faulted Abure for insisting on staying as the LP national chairman, even when his tenure had expired and the party members also don’t want him again.
The stakeholders there and then ratified a motion making Usman the acting Chairman of LP.
The meeting, also attended Obi, came two days after a factional national chairman, Abure, threatened to sanction Otti and Obi for anti-party activities and the scheduled parallel NEC meeting.
These actions and counteractions in the Labour Party are perceived by political watchers as counterproductive to the party’s chances in the next general elections.
Speaking on the effect the party’s internal divisions could have on their chances in the Anambra election and the 2027 general elections, a political analyst, Dr Richard Ozumba, said the leadership crisis threatens its survival and performance.
“This conflict will surely lead to a loss of focus on key campaign issues, and they will not have a united front.
“Voters may view the party’s internal conflicts as a sign of weakness, eroding trust and confidence in their ability to lead the country or states.
“It might result in a decline in voters support for the party.
“The current crisis can affect the party’s fortunes in 2027 and beyond; if left unaddressed, internal divisions can lead to a loss of momentum and decreased relevance in the political landscape.
“As it stands, the party has to reinvent itself to remain politically relevant, only time will tell,” Ozumba said.
It is stakeholders’ view that the LP’s unending crisis can weaken Nigeria’s fledgling democracy.
They say LP’s leadership should eschew bitterness, drop selfish ambitions and resolve the pending issues agreeably before the 2027 general elections.(NANFeatures)
