The national leadership of the Labour Party has demanded an apology and gratitude from Lamidi Apapa and his faction of the party to former presidential candidate Peter Obi.
The demand comes after an appeal court in Edo State upheld Julius Abure as the legitimate national chairman of the party, effectively quashing Apapa’s claim to the position.
Speaking on behalf of the Labour Party, national spokesperson Tanko Yunusa, emphasized the pivotal role played by Peter Obi in elevating the party’s stature and securing significant victories in both national and state elections during the February 25, 2023, general election.
The Labour Party, once considered a minor player on the political stage, emerged as of the country’s major political parties after Peter Obi joined its fold and ran for the presidential election on its platform, with several candidates clinching victories that defied expectations.
Yunusa said although Apapa’s faction of the party constituted itself an opposition to the party’s progress, there was room for reconciliation if they were willing to turn a leaf.
“The political party is still open for them to come in and of course, this is a disciplined political party. They should come in and apologize for the mistakes that they’ve made and then we would know how to deal with their issues according to the Constitution of the party,” he said.
Yunusa further elaborated that the party’s leadership believed it was only fitting for Lamidi Apapa and his faction to express gratitude to Obi for his immense contribution to the party’s emergence as key player in Nigeria’s political terrain.
“But if they stay on the other side, remember they only have Peter Gregory Obi and Datti Baba-Ahmed to give gratitude to because if these particular individuals have not joined the party, I wonder where they would have been, I wonder if the party would have been, I wonder if the party would have been able to win all of these seats (national and state assemblies) that I just mentioned.
“So, for us, it is in moving forward, no retreat, no surrender. We will keep on moving until we emancipate the Nigerian people from the shackles of poverty and get Nigeria on the right path. We believe that a new Nigeria is possible under Peter Obi and Abure,” he said.
Yunusu stress that the LP leadership expects Apapa to recognize and acknowledge the debt of gratitude owed to Mr. Obi for his commitment to the party’s success.
His call for an apology is in response to the court ruling affirming Julius Abure’s leadership of the party.
But in its earlier reaction, Apapa’s faction said the Edo court judgment only ruled on Aburi’s suspension.
The faction’s spokesman, Abayomi Arabambi, insisted that the Abuja High Court’s restraining order that recognised Apapa as acting national chairman remains in force.
“Our party attention was drawn to misleading information that has been peddled around by some criminal elements loyal to the police-indicted former National Chairman of Labour Party Mr Julius Abure. Labour Party wishes to state categorically that our complaint in the appeal filed before the court of appeal bothered on his suspension as a member in Article 19(2)A of our party constitution which the three justices of the court of appeal did not take cognisance of and refused to make findings on.
“We are aware of the capacity of Peter Obi and Abure Julius to tamper with court proceedings and documents as evidence in the forgery perpetrated in Abuja FCT high court where the signature and seal of judges were forged by Abure Julius and which he boasted yesterday in Lagos with Peter Obi that nobody in Nigeria can probe or arraigned him in court and three others indicted by the police.
“Surprisingly, the same Abure has a pending appeal in the Supreme Court against this same set of justice which has been filed and served on us to arrest today’s judgment. But since they know it may not fly in the face of the law, Abure resorted to his trademark by engaging the services of unscrupulous elements in the Edo state high court to tamper with the records transmitted. What we don’t know is if Abure has now become the Chief Judge of Edo state to be able to commit any crime and get away with it
“The said missing document is in the transmitted copy with our lawyer and duly paid for, but unfortunately this singular criminal act that aided Julius Abure today at the court of appeal was the reason the three justices base their judgment on the suspension of Julius Abure,” said Arabambi.