Amid the Labour Party crisis, Kingibe throws his support behind the Otti-led panel, while Aisha Yesufu launches a sharp attack on Abure, highlighting deep divisions within the party.
The 29-man caretaker committee, which was recently established by the party’s stakeholders, has received support from Senator Ireti Kingibe representing the Federal Capital Territory amidst escalating crisis within the Labour Party.
Activist Aisha Yesufu criticized LP National Chairman, Julius Abure for allegedly mishandling campaign funds.
Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of a political party for the 2023 election and Alex Otti, Governor of Abia State organized an expanded meeting with various stakeholders in Umuahia. The objective was to resolve the ongoing leadership crisis within their political party.
During the meeting, it was established that a caretaker committee under the leadership of Nenadi Usman would manage party affairs and facilitate a nationwide convention.
The National Chairman, Julius Abure; National Secretary, Umar Farouk and the National Youth Leader, Kennedy Ahanotu were noticeably missing from the gathering.
During the flag-off of a four-day free medical outreach in Abuja, which she facilitated with the National Commission for Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons, Kingibe stated that Abure and his followers had not accepted reality.
Dr Chris Omofoma, Senior Legislative Aide to Kingibe, stated to The PUNCH that it was common knowledge among all LP members that Abure’s term with the NWC had already concluded in June 2023.
The Labour Party does not currently face any crisis. Rather, it is Abure’s NWC that has failed to acknowledge the conclusion of its term in office.
Abure’s tenure was set to end in June 2023 as stated by INEC. However, Alex Otti and Peter Obi decided to extend it for an additional year so that the party could recuperate from the losses incurred during the 2023 elections before holding their national convention.
Their tenure was prolonged until June 8, 2024; however, it has now expired. Alex Otti, Obi and other members of the party have acted in accordance with both the constitution and INEC guidelines.
“She said that Abure needs to accept the fact that his time has ended and it is necessary for him to take appropriate action. She fully supports the committee led by Nenadi Usman and agrees with their plan of action.”
Abure denied the accusation of misappropriating party campaign donations during his address to journalists at Monday’s National Executive Committee meeting.
It is imperative that I take advantage of this opportunity to clarify certain matters. Both the party and myself have been accused of bearing responsibility for Peter Obi’s loss in the 2023 general election. According to these accusations, mismanagement by the party entailed botched campaigning efforts, inadequate donations towards electoral funds as well as funds dedicated solely toward compensation for agents which resulted in Peter Obi faltering throughout his campaign leading up till polling day.
Obi personally handled the financing of the election and there was no involvement from the party with regards to donations. Aisha Yesufu and Pastor Itua Ighodalo were designated as signatories for these accounts, assuming joint responsibility for compensating polling unit agents.
The claim that Aisha Yesufu and Pastor Ighodalo were solely in charge of managing the LP presidential campaign funds for the 2023 election was denied by the Obi-Datti fundraising team.
On Tuesday, Yesufu posted a viral video on her official YouTube account in which she reacted by referring to Abure as an habitual liar. Furthermore, Yesufu also served as the chairman of the campaign fundraising team.
Since 2022, the activist has been challenging the national chairman to publicly disclose how he utilized the funds collected from his notorious “Labour Party N1,000 Challenge” campaign donations.
Abure’s statement was a complete fabrication. He seems to believe that he can get away with making unfounded claims, just like in the past when labor unions operated without transparency or accountability thanks to an absence of digital recording technology. I am someone who places great importance on meticulousness and adherence to established procedures, especially when it comes to certain matters.
At times, the fundraising team grew frustrated with me for my insistence on following due process. Prior to Mr Obi launching his campaign account, the Labour Party had already established theirs. I possess a tweet from 24/11/22 regarding their “Labour Party N1,000 Challenge”, encouraging individuals to contribute at least ₦1000 towards the Zenith Account 1225832294 and take ownership of LP’s campaign efforts.
Abure’s opening of that account made me extremely angry. Though some people innocently dismissed it, citing that the funds were for the same Labour Party campaign, I firmly disagreed. It wasn’t a matter of equivalence because we had no authority to use any money from the LP account in our electioneering efforts since it was beyond our reach.
READ ALSO: 2027: Abure-Led Labour Party Revokes Automatic Ticket for Obi and Otti
It is unbelievable that Julius Abure would boldly deny involvement in any campaign and attribute it solely to Aisha Yesufu and Pastor Itua when there are actually three signatories involved. Additionally, the LP has yet to provide an account for both donated funds from the public as well as money used to purchase forms. This statement only further emphasizes the lack of transparency within their organization.
Six months after Yesufu announced that the fundraising team had received donations of N596m from party supporters, obedient movements and philanthropic Nigerians worldwide; allegations and counter-allegations were made.
According to her, Obi incurred expenses amounting to N744.5 million on lawsuits that arose from his defeat in the presidential race of 2023.
Abure announced during the Monday party NEC meeting that automatic tickets previously reserved for Obi and Otti ahead of the 2027 elections had been withdrawn.
After the NEC meeting, Abure stated that all political party tickets from presidential to houses of assembly positions are now available for eligible Nigerians.
The communiqué stated that during the NEC session, they reconsidered the choice made by the national convention to exclusively allocate their presidential and gubernatorial tickets to Peter Gregory Obi and Alex Otti. As a result, all positions offered by the party from Presidency down to local government assemblies are now available for capable Nigerians.
Akin Osuntokun, the ex-Director General of Obi/Datti Presidential Campaign Council expressed doubts about the decision and believed that there might be deceptive intentions lurking behind it.
During his appearance on Arise TV on Tuesday, Osuntokun expressed skepticism towards Abure’s reversal of the automatic ticket status for Obi and Otti. He believed that this change in decision only a few weeks after its initial declaration indicated an underlying motive.
The former campaign DG expressed worry about having a national chairman from the South while the presidential candidate also hails from that region due to financial constraints.
He suggested that the party should find a way to balance things out so as not to be viewed by Nigerians as favoring only one region.
Abure is not authorized to determine the candidacy of an individual, as his belief that he can demonstrates a significant misunderstanding and inflated sense of self-importance. How could anyone in Abure’s position claim such authority? This would imply they have already chosen the recipient of their presidential nomination – a notion which defies all reason.
Many were assured that Obi and Otti would keep their tickets due to the strength and capacity displayed by the Labour Party during the last election.
However, certain parties with vested interests, such as the governing party itself, may aim to undermine their own organization. This can be achieved by targeting the national chairman position. As previously witnessed in Lamidi Apapa’s case, this situation is repeating itself once again.
According to him, organizing a convention without the approval of INEC is impossible. Even if some key participants skip it and there’s no consent from INEC, it will be obvious. He added that Africa suffers primarily due to this trend of leaders not wanting to step down willingly.
Osuntokun rejected Abure’s assertion, stating that “there is a high probability that Obi will be the candidate of our party in the upcoming election as he hails from the South-East. According to Nigeria’s prevailing political landscape, it would make sense for someone other than a Southerner to become chairperson of the party. That sounds logical.”
