From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Labour Party (LP), has been enmeshed in a number of crises that have the potential to significantly impact the party’s internal cohesion and external perception.
The party’s internal wranglings, characterized by leadership disputes and allegations of misconduct, can significantly impact its performance in the upcoming elections if not properly managed, political pundits have warned.
The struggle for control and influence among key figures and stakeholders has led to a climate of uncertainty and instability, making it challenging for the party to present a united front and a coherent vision to the electorate.
The party, long before now has alway been embattled, with different factions competing for its soul. Although, the emergence of Mr Peter Obi in 2022 was able to bring some level of sanity with which the LP was able to make a good show during the 2023 general elections.
However, since after the 2023 election, the Labour Party has not known peace. At the centre of the crises is the party’s national chairman, Julius Abure.
The party’s recent crisis began when after the elections, some of its members, led by one Lamidi Apapa, came out to accuse Abure of forgery and fraud.
The Lamidi faction went on to obtain a court order from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) high court restraining Abure from parading himself as the party’s chairman, while it took over the LP Headquarters in Abuja. Abure later contested the court ruling at the appeal court and won.
The LP crisis reached its peak when the national chairman was arrested by the police in Benin City, Edo State, in February over allegations of forgery and illegal possession of firearms.
At some point, the party’s leader, Obi stepped in, and requested that an audit of the party’s finances be conducted. These persistent allegations, political analysts believe, are not only tarnishing the party’s public image but also eroding trust among party members and supporters, especially considering the ideology that it claims to represent.
The crises in the Party took a new turn in March when the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) leadership led by Joe Ajaero demanded the resignation of Àbure over similar allegations along with allegations of party dictatorship. The bone of contention was a shady national convention which the NLC’s political commission accused Abure of planning in order to serve his interest.
According to the Labour union, which claims ownership of LP, the convention was supposed to include all of the parties stakeholders as contained in a peace accord signed by both parties before the general elections.
Members of the NLC went further to picket the national secretariat of the party and passed a vote of no confidence in Àbure. They accused Abure of “financial rascality” and disdain for their president, Ajaero, while waving various placards and sang solidarity songs.
Abure nonetheless held the national convention in March at Nnewi, Anambra State, where he was reinstated as the national chairman of the party despite calls from many quarters, including its members at the National Assembly and Obi himself to postpone the event until a wider stakeholder engagement had been established. This move has no doubt deepened the party’s wounds.
The convention, intended to be a significant assembly of party members following the 2023 general elections, where stakeholders would discuss the future of the LP amidst leadership crises, defection rumours, merger talks, and more, ultimately resulted in the opposite outcome.
Yunusa Tanko, spokesperson of the Labour Party (LP) campaign organisation in the 2023 elections, said the national convention was supposed to serve as an avenue to strengthen the party’s structure by mobilizing members from ward level to local government, up to national level. He said that unfortunately it failed to serve that purpose.
Many believe that the convention was orchestrated to serve a particular purpose, which was to return the entire Abure-led executive. This is demonstrated by the fact that, with the exception of the Deputy National Chairmanship post, which will be filled by the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and NLC, all other positions were returned with Abure.
Apart from denying entry to specific groups, it was also learned that at least five people were detained and turned over to the police after they broke into the arena covertly to distribute inciting leaflets thought to be critical of the party’s leadership.
Key members of the party such as Dr Alex Otti, the only governor produced by the party; Mr Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the party, members of the National Assembly, as well as some state legislators on the party platform were absent at the event. Also, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it did not monitor the convention.
Outrage over the contentious convention has not subsided, with numerous party members and stakeholders, especially the NLC, vowing never to accept Abure as the party’s chairman unless another national convention is conducted following due process.
The NLC even recently issued a communique after a meeting it held with some aggrieved stakeholders of the party, saying that it had set up a transition committee to replace Abure and take over affairs of the party.
Meanwhile, some members of the party loyal to Abure have dismissed the outrage and criticisms as orchestrated plans by the opposition to bring the LP down.
The National Youth Leader of LP, Prince Kennedy Ahanotu, however, ascribed the clamour against the leadership to the competing interests of those looking to reap rewards for their own selfish endeavours.
He emphasised that the NLC does not have the right to control LP’s business just because it registered the party, and he added that most of the agreements between the two parties have been upheld, with the exception of the postponed inauguration of the Board of Trustees because of the quality of the NLC-appointed officials.
He further explained that since INEC is merely an optional requirement and not required by law, adding that its absence from the convention does not invalidate the results.
Despite the seeming show of indifference by the party’s leadership, a top official of the LP who spoke anonymously to DailySun said they were working frantically behind closed-doors to appease aggrieved members and restore order to the party.
“According to him, we are trying not to speak about the issue to the media because there are ongoing talks and consultations to see how we can resolve the issue ”, the source said.
On his party, Obi who once hinted that he may leave the party if push came to shove, has refused to make further comments on the matter, claiming that he is more focused on making a positive impact on the country, than talking about party politics.
In the meantime, many have advised Abure and the other party leaders to make necessary sacrifices that will restore peace to the party if they hope to stand a chance in the next general elections.
How the party manages to address its current challenges and present a compelling vision for the future will ultimately shape its electoral fortunes in the years to come, according to a Political Analyst, Dr Sam Amadi.
Amadi, Director of the Abuja School of Social and Political Thought, said: “The crisis is predictable in my opinion. The LP party has structural, institutional and cultural defects. You can see that before Peter Obi, the party had over 20 or 30 cases in court. The party never had a proper convention. Abure will succeed someone either by death or by issues. Some of the candidates who lost in APC or PDP ran to LP and bought their tickets.
“So the party had no capacity to be properly organised and then Peter Obi happened, things moved so fast and they did not have the time to reorganize themselves and structure it. And Peter Obi lost the election and somebody else became the President.
“You know, what happens with these small parties is that the leaders see them as their daily meals and so each time there is effort to remove them, there is a problem.
“So we should understand the psychology for these small parties. It is an opportunity for these activists or their promoters to make a livelihood. Either they keep it as an economic center where they make money, or they keep it as where they run elections.
“So if the Labour leaders are reasonable, (Abure and others), they should be prepared to lose something to gain something bigger. Meaning, within themselves, the answer is that let everyone including Abure step down. Let there be a new leadership. If they do not do that, the party’s time has gone. So, we will not wait for what Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar and Tinubu will do.
“So my position is that if they resolve it and Peter Obi stays, LP has a chance in 2027 but if they continue with this quarrel, which I think they may not resolve, because everybody is looking at their meal ticket and Peter Obi leaves, then Labour has no chance. It can win one or two seats here and there but never a contender for presidency.Because labour in the presidential election is just peter Obi basically.”