LP crisis: INEC, Baba-Ahmed present as Abure hosts NEC meeting 

The Labour Party’s National Chairman, Julius Abure, on Friday presided over a National Executive Council meeting, attended by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission and former vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed.

The NEC meeting, held at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja, was convened against the backdrop of long-running disputes over the 2024 national convention, in Nnewi, Anambra State.

The gathering of NEC members and stakeholders returned Abure as chairman and triggered a flurry of litigations, factions, and counter-claims from other high-ranking stakeholders, including the 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and Abia State Governor, Alex Otti.

In July of the same year, Obi, Otti and other party leaders openly rejected the outcome of the Nnewi convention and set up a 29-man caretaker committee headed by former minister, Nemadi Usman, to organise inclusive congresses and a fresh national convention.

The move deepened a leadership split that has dragged on for months, with both sides citing court orders and constitutional provisions to justify their claims.

Addressing journalists after Friday’s meeting, Abure explained that NEC members leaned heavily on the recent Supreme Court pronouncements affirming that the leadership and internal affairs of political parties are non-justiciable.

He said, “The NEC has the responsibility and power to manage the affairs of political parties between national conventions as well as to fill vacant positions.

“It is for this reason that we called this meeting so that we can do the needful, resolve all our crises, differences and strategically position the party for the 2027 election.

“There is no gainsaying that the fact that there will be a beginning of the existence of the Labour Party. That we have come this far is a powerful statement that we have made. Whether we like it or not, LP has become a reference point in the political firmament of Nigeria.

“We have done so and reinforced the supremacy of political parties in Nigeria. The Labour Party has set the pace and standard that parties are bigger than individual persons in the party.”

The chairman also appreciated the leadership of INEC for sending its representatives to cover the proceedings, saying it has ratified his position.

“Without sounding parochial or immodest, I have always said that when lawyers are in office, there is always equity, justice, fair play and peace. I am happy that peace is finally returning to most political parties that are having crises because we have a lawyer at the helm of INEC leadership.

“Therefore, I want to appreciate the commission for being there. We are aligning ourselves with INEC, which currently has its officials here. They were not with us at the Nnewi convention, and that resulted in some measures of controversy.”

Quoting the apex court judgment, Abure noted that political parties are “corporate entities with their constitution, rules, regulations and guidelines which are binding on members,” adding that members who join do so “freely” and are bound by internal mechanisms for dispute resolution.

After reviewing the Nnewi convention and the controversies surrounding it, the NEC reaffirmed the list of national officers elected on March 27, 2024, in Anambra State, with Abure retained as National Chairman and Umar Farouk Ibrahim as National Secretary, among others.

The council also filled several vacant positions, mandating the chairman and secretary to convene a special convention if necessary, and ratifying plans to conduct ward, local government and state congresses nationwide.

The INEC delegation comprised officials from the Litigation and Election and Party Monitoring (EPM) departments led by Mrs Rakiya Dattijo.