From Leo Sobechi, Sodiq
Omolaoye, John Akubo (Abuja) and Kehinde Olatunji (Lagos)

• Obi, Otti storm INEC, demand recognition of Usman as LP Chair
• Obi, supporters jubilating for nothing, CTC vindicates Abure – LP spokesman
• Apapa declares self chair, summons NEC meeting for Monday
• Nigeria collapsing, LP will correct past mistakes in 2027 – Obi
 
 
Like a cancerous outgrowth, the leadership crisis dogging the Labour Party (LP) seems to have developed complications despite what came as the final adjudication on the dispute.
  
Matters came to a head yesterday as three factions laid claims to the leadership after the Supreme Court, in what sounds like a nebulous pronouncement, set aside the Appeal Court ruling, which affirmed Mr Julius Abure as the national chairman of the party, averring that the court below lacked jurisdiction to entertain the case.
  
While the Abure-led faction insisted that there is no leadership vacuum in the party following the Supreme Court judgment, the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting yesterday approved the transition committee headed by Nenadi Usman to start rebuilding the party from scratch.
  
The decision was taken at the NEC meeting attended by Governor Alex Oti of Abia State; Peter Obi, the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general election; Datti Baba-Ahmed, the Vice-Presidential candidate, Nenadi Usman; and Joe Ajaero, NLC President, who was represented by Ibrahim Umar, former NLC President, among others.
  
But in a statement by the National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, he insisted that there is nowhere the apex court judgment said the leadership of Abure-led executive has elapsed or that Usman and her National Caretaker Committee has been directed to take over the leadership of the party, maintaining that any meeting convened in disregard to the constitution of the party is illegal and the outcome null and void.
   
The faction dismissed the claims of the NCC, remarking that the Usman committee and their supporters were rejoicing over nothing since, according to them, the Supreme Court judgment reaffirmed Abure’s chairmanship of the party.
   
Parading the Certified True Copy (CTC) during the NEC meeting, Obi and Otti declared their support for Senator Nenadi Usman-led NCC. The leaders noted that the Supreme Court decision affirmed the Usman committee as the authentic leadership of the party, adding that the judgement restored hope to Nigeria’s democracy.
   
Immediately after the NEC meeting, Obi, Otti and other party leaders stormed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) national headquarters, demanding recognition of Usman as LP chair. They were received by INEC’s Acting Chairman, Sam Olumekun, and other National Commissioners.  
  
Confirming the development on its X (Twitter) handle, the commission said: “During the visit, Governor Otti formally presented a Certified True Copy of the recent Supreme Court judgment concerning the party’s leadership. He noted that the meeting was aimed at fostering clarity, mutual understanding, and institutional alignment regarding the LP’s current structure. Olumekun reaffirmed the Commission’s unwavering commitment to neutrality, transparency, and the rule of law in the discharge of its constitutional responsibilities.”
  
It was gathered that INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, was absent during the meeting, as he is currently in the Gambia attending the ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions meeting. Yakubu’s absence had raised concerns, especially amidst rumours that President Bola Tinubu had sacked him.
  
“Kindly note, dear colleagues, that National Commissioner Sam Olumekun is the Acting Chairman of INEC at the moment. The Chairman has travelled to the Gambia to attend the ECONEC (ECOWAS Network of Electoral Commissions) meeting”, Chief Press Secretary to the INEC chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi, clarified.  
   
Amid the ensuing drama, Lamidi Apapa declared himself the party’s national chairman, citing the Supreme Court’s judgment. He made the declaration at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, adding a new twist to the leadership crisis rocking the party.
  
Apapa, whose claim to the party’s leadership dates back to 2022, reasserted himself as the party’s chair on Wednesday, joining Abure and Usman, who have made similar declarations in the aftermath of the Supreme Court verdict. While claiming to be the chair of the party in the lead-up to the 2023 general elections, Apapa antagonised the party’s presidential candidate, Obi. He also made frantic efforts to thwart the case Obi and the party filed in court to challenge the victory of President Bola Tinubu and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).
  
Renewing his claim to the party’s leadership on Wednesday, Apapa announced that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party, as constituted as of 2022, would meet on Monday, April 14. While declaring all actions and decisions Abure took since April 4 as null and void, Apapa announced Farouk Umar Ibrahim as the interim National Secretary.
  
He stated: “Following the decision of the Supreme Court on setting aside all judgments that recognise the leadership of Abure as National Chairman, I, Bashiru Lamidi Apapa, the most senior deputy national, and in consonance with our party constitution, Article 14 2(a)(b), hereby take over the running of the affairs of our great party with effect from today, Wednesday, the 9th day of April 2025, in an acting capacity, and Farouk Umar Ibrahim as National Secretary,” he stated.
 
“My leadership hereby calls on all members of the Labour Party that the National Working Committee of our party as of 2022 will meet next week, Monday, 14th April 2025, to announce our plans, which will include zoning the position of National Chairman to the North and National Secretary to the South. My leadership will also take proactive steps to resuscitate the moribund Board of Trustees and make it functional.”
  
However, Obi has lamented that the country’s hardship level is alarming. Obi spoke during the NEC meeting and expanded stakeholders’ summit of the LP in Abuja.
  
The NEC meeting was presided over by Usman, a former finance minister and current chairperson of the party’s caretaker committee. “The numbers are clear; the indices are clear; people are getting poorer daily. Those that would call me to come and eat and drink with them, now see me and ask to bring something,” Obi said.
  
“Do not fear anybody. Those who were afraid yesterday didn’t do any better. We must speak out when things are going wrong. Nigeria is collapsing.”
Obi also said the LP would fix past errors by ensuring credible and qualified candidates represent the party in the 2027 general election. “Anyone seeking to contest under our party must be a committed member, not just someone passing through. They must be competent,” he said.
   
“Let’s do the right thing, let’s go from ward to local government to state, to zone and nationally; everybody is free to contest. We will ensure fairness, and we want to build a party that will be fair and just, and people can look at and say, ‘This is how this party is.’
  
“We want to go into the next election knowing fully well that we are offering Nigeria’s the best of people for house of assembly, house of reps, senate, governors, and every form of election. We want to correct the mistake we made in the past; we will be sure that whoever wants to contest must be a Labour Party member and not on transit.”