A Federal High Court in Abuja has declared the 2024 Labour Party national convention held in Nnewi in March as valid, constitutional and in line with all laid down laws in Nigeria.
In a ruling delivered by Justice Emeka Nwite, the court compelled the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to grant due recognition and all privileges to the Labour Party’s National Working Committee led by Barrister Julius Abure.
It would be recalled that shortly after the Nnewi Convention of the Labour Party in which both Governor Alex Otti and Mr. Peter Obi boycotted, the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) announced that it did not recognise Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party as it did monitor the said convention that returned him and other NWC members.
INEC later excluded Abure and labour party from the the commission’s refresher training for uploading party agents ahead of the Edo and Ondo governorship elections. This prompted Abure-led leadership of the Labour Party to approach the federal high court to compel INEC to recognize Abure as the substantive national chairman of the Labour Party.
In the wake of this leadership crisis, Abia state governor, Alex Otti and the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 presidential election, Mr. Peter Obi called for an expanded stakeholders meeting of the Labour Party where they announce the constitution of a National Caretaker Committee led by Mrs. Esther Nenadi Usman.