CITIZENS COMPASS— The National Working Committee of the Labour Party (LP), Julius Abure faction has apologised to Nigerians for presenting its former presidential candidate, Peter Obi during the 2023 elections.
The Labour Party said this following the defection of Peter Obi to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
The faction described the defection as a “liberation”, saying it regrets fielding him in the last general election.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday, December 31, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, said Obi’s exit only confirmed what the leadership claimed had already happened internally amid the party’s prolonged leadership crisis.
The leadership of the Labour Party took note of the defection of its 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi and a few of his supporters to the African Democratic Congress.
“We also took note of the lacklustre speech Obi made at the occasion, and wondered what new things he intends to sell to Nigerians. For us in the Labour Party, we wondered why it took them this long to make the move because we have, since September 2024, parted ways with Peter Obi and some of his blind supporters in the National Assembly.
“We have patiently waited for this day. The party is finally liberated by this defection and as Party leaders, we count it as a blessing,” he said,
Ifoh said the party had repeatedly urged Obi and his loyalists to leave if they could not work with the Abure-led leadership, adding that disciplinary steps had already been taken against some lawmakers aligned with the former presidential candidate.
It will be on record that the leadership of the Labour Party had since urged Obi and his disgruntled followers to exit the party if they were unable to work with the leadership of the party.
“As a matter of fact, the party had suspended many of the lawmakers for anti-party activities and was clearly going to mete the same treatment on the presidential candidate but for the intervention of some well-meaning Nigerians,” he stated.
The statement also accused Obi and Abia State Governor Alex Otti of contributing to the internal crisis, claiming they sponsored efforts to unseat the party’s current leadership. The Labour Party said it expected Otti to follow Obi out of the party, but claimed he remained around despite being suspended.
“We had also expected Governor Otti to follow Obi out of the party. We are surprised that even though he has been suspended from the party, he is still loitering around. It is still not too late for him to follow his political leader,” the statement added.
The party further dismissed Obi’s defection rally in Enugu as poorly attended and claimed it was boycotted by prominent political and traditional stakeholders in the South-East.
He said, “The party also warned that the charade which took place today in Enugu was largely boycotted by prominent political and traditional institutions in the South East. All we saw were mere political spent forces who cannot win in their wards should there be an election today.
“This is clearly a danger signal that the Obi presidency (or Vice Presidency) is already a failed project from inception. He has clearly lost the charm that had endeared him to the people before 2023.”
In a sweeping criticism, the Abure-led leadership argued that Obi’s 2023 presidential bid contributed to what it described as the South-East’s marginal presence under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, alleging the region received fewer ministerial slots and continued to face marginalisation in infrastructure allocation.
“He must be told that the South East lost out completely in President Tinubu’s government because they trusted and believed in him in 2023. While some states of the federation boast as many as five ministers, all the states in the South East were given a paltry five ministerial slots.
“The marginalisation against the zone has continued even in infrastructure allocation and I wonder if the Southeast will repeat the same political harakiri.
“The party asks forgiveness from Nigerians for fielding an unfitting presidential candidate in 2023,” he said.
—Franktalknow
