The leadership crisis in the Labour Party appears to have taken a new twist as the Court of Appeal in Owerri, Imo State, on Thursday, sacked Julius Abure and recognized Lamido Apapa as the National Chairman of the Labour Party.
This is coming barely 10 days after the Court of Appeal sitting in Benin City, the Edo State, affirmed Julius Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party,
The court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to immediately recognize and publish the names of all the governorship candidates produced by the Apapa-led National Working Committee in Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi states.
The court also dismissed the gubernatorial candidature of Senator Athan Achonu of Imo state, and others belonging to the Abure-led LP faction.
What you should know
The leadership crisis which appears to have polarized the Labour party has been going on for several months with several factions laying claim to being in charge of the party.
Earlier in April 2023, some members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Labour Party led by the Deputy National Chairman of the party (South), Lamidi Apapa, took over the affairs of the party following a court judgment that restrained Julius Abure and 3 others from parading themselves as national officers of the party.
Lamidi said he is now the Acting National Chairman of the party while Saleh Lawan is the Acting National Secretary.
According to him, Abure and the 3 others must vacate the order of the Federal High Court retraining them before further action can be taken on the leadership of the party.
Meanwhile, Abure dismissed the move, tagging it as “illegitimate” and a ploy by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to destabilise the party.
On May 26, a State High Court sitting in Edo State was reported to have dismissed the notice of suspension issued against Abure by some party members at the ward level. The judge, Justice Emmanuel Aihamoje, threw out the case for lacking merit.
Also on August 14, a Court of Appeal sitting in Benin City, Edo State capital, affirmed Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party.
Judicial Rascality? An Appeal Court Ruled for Abure on the 14th August 2023, and another Court of Similar Jurisdiction Ruled Against Abure Ten Days after the First Ruling? May God Save Nigeria and Nigerians!
Nigerian judiciary – money-for-hand, back-for-ground!!