Governor Otti,
Supporters of Senator Esther Nenadi Usman’s National Caretaker Committee of the Labour Party (LP) erupted in celebration in Abuja on Wednesday, following the release of the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the party’s leadership crisis.
Reading from the court’s judgment during the Labour Party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting and expanded stakeholders’ summit at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, declared that the apex court had affirmed Usman’s leadership.
The meeting was also attended by the party’s national leader and 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, just two days after a factional national chairman, Julius Abure, threatened to discipline both men for alleged anti-party activities and their involvement in the parallel NEC.
Quoting the court, Otti said, “The Supreme Court has affirmed that the plaintiffs—Senator Usman and others—were right in their appeal, and the judgment also warned politicians to respect the tenures of office as defined in their party constitutions.”
Otti criticized Abure for clinging to the position of national chairman despite his tenure having expired.
According to him, efforts were made to accommodate Abure, including offering him the role of Chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT), but he refused.
“I met with him and asked what he wanted. He claimed he wanted nothing. We even offered him the BoT chairmanship. Despite that, he insisted on remaining in office, even after the expiration of his tenure and those of the National Working Committee (NWC),” Otti explained.
He stressed that the proper route for anyone seeking to lead the party was through the democratic process starting from ward congresses up to the national convention, where every member would have a chance to contest.
