…Spokesman: LP Ticket Open to all Nigerians, Not Obi Alone
By Jeremy Fregene
The internal power struggle rocking the Labour Party (LP) took a decisive turn on Wednesday after the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise a caretaker committee led by former Minister of Finance, Senator Nenadi Usman, effectively knocking out the Julius Abure–led faction and reshaping calculations ahead of the 2027 presidential race.
The ruling has emboldened top LP operatives who are now openly pushing the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, to once again fly its flag, even though he has already joined African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition aimed at unseating President Bola Tinubu.
A senior Labour Party source told KTH Daily that beyond his interest in the ADC coalition, the former Anambra State governor has grown increasingly frustrated by the protracted leadership crisis that has torn the Party apart for some time. According to the source, Obi delayed making a definitive move to the ADC until the last minute because his political handlers hoped for a judicial or political resolution that would hand the upper ground to the Nenadi Usman faction, to which he belongs.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said the court victory had revived hopes within the party that Obi might still return fully to the LP fold if his presidential ambition within the ADC is blocked by the formidable political machinery of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
“The thinking in the party is simple,” the source told KTH Daily. “If Obi is edged out in the ADC by Atiku’s structure, Labour Party will still be his most natural home, especially now that the Abure faction has been removed by the court.”
The source however criticized Obi for not having shown interest in the party’s travails, right up to the court proceedings. “It was vintage Peter,” he said. “ When we were running around in this matter, he didn’t show any interest. But since yesterday, after the judgement, he suddenly started calling everybody, calling (Abia State Governor Alex)Otti, calling Nenadi, calling this, calling that. But well, we know that’s the way he is, but as you know, he’s an organic part of us, so we’ll see how things play out,” he said.
Spokesperson to the triumphant Nenadi Usman faction, Ken Asogwa, a lawyer, however dismissed outright that the Labour Party presidential ticket is being held open specifically for Obi.
Speaking exclusively to KTH Daily, he insisted that the presidential ticket is open to all Nigerians within the zone the party defines as its catchment area. “Obi is a Nigerian and he, like millions of other Nigerians is free to vie for the ticket. But to say we are holding it specifically for him is totally false. Don’t forget he’s no longer a member of our party, and he cannot belong to two parties at the same time,” he said.
In the judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu, the Federal High Court relied on the April 4, 2025 decision of the Supreme Court to affirm Senator Usman as the legitimate leader of the Labour Party and ordered INEC to immediately recognise the Nenadi Usman–led National Caretaker Committee pending the conduct of a national convention.
The court held that Julius Abure’s tenure as National Chairman had expired and rejected his argument that the dispute was an internal party affair beyond judicial scrutiny. Justice Lifu ruled that the constitution of the caretaker committee was a necessary consequence of the Supreme Court’s verdict and warned that ruling otherwise would amount to judicial insubordination.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2262/2025, was filed by Usman, with Abure and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) listed as defendants. The judge said all the reliefs sought by Usman were meritorious and accordingly granted them.
The leadership crisis in the party had earlier led the National Executive Committee to remove Abure and constitute a 29-member caretaker committee chaired by Usman. That decision was taken at an expanded stakeholders’ meeting in Umuahia, Abia State, hosted by Governor Alex Otti and chaired by Peter Obi himself.
Abure had challenged his removal in court, insisting he was lawfully elected National Chairman at the party’s convention held in Nnewi, Anambra State, on March 27, 2024. Although both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal initially upheld his position, their decisions were overturned by the Supreme Court, setting the stage for Wednesday’s ruling.
Reacting, the Abure-led faction vowed to appeal. In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Mr Obiora Ifoh, the group accused Justice Lifu of misinterpreting the Supreme Court judgment and insisted that courts lacked the power to impose leaders on political parties.
The faction said it would approach the Court of Appeal after obtaining the Certified True Copy of the judgment, alleging procedural bias and claiming that the Supreme Court never ruled that Abure’s tenure had expired.
Meanwhile, in a related setback for the party, the same Federal High Court upheld INEC’s exclusion of Labour Party candidates from the February 21 Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections.
Justice Lifu dismissed a suit filed by the party and its candidates, ruling that it was statute-barred for not being filed within 14 days of the cause of action. He declined to compel INEC to accept or publish the LP’s list of candidates, thereby affirming the commission’s position.
The twin rulings have deepened the stakes for the Labour Party at a critical moment, even as attention shifts to whether Peter Obi will remain within the ADC coalition framework or ultimately return to a now court-backed LP leadership to pursue his presidential ambition.