• Abure’s Exco knocks Usman over INEC ‘near deregistration’
• Says INEC must respect rule of law

Afenifere has refuted allegations by a faction of the Labour Party (LP) that it was involved in financial infractions during the 2023 presidential election.  
 
The Julius Abure-led LP faction also berated claims by the Interim National Chairperson of the party, Nenadi Usman, that her committee saved LP from being deregistered by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
 
Calling on Usman and her supporters to retrace their steps, the faction emphasised that INEC is bound to respect the laws of the land.  Afenifere, in a statement issued by its Deputy Leader, Oladipo Olaitan, and National Publicity Secretary, Justice Faloye, described the allegations of the spokesman of the Abure-led exco, Abayomi Arabambi, as reckless. 
 
Arabambi had, a few days ago, called for the investigation of Afenifere leaders for allegedly retaining over N600 million in campaign funds in private accounts, with the trio of Pa Ayo Adebanjo, Akin Osuntokun and Sola Ebiseni specifically mentioned. 
 
In a statement made available to The Guardian, the pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation noted that the support given to Peter Obi was not tied to any monetary benefit.
 
The statement reads, “For the avoidance of any doubt, neither Afenifere nor any of its members, particularly Adebanjo, Osuntokun or Ebiseni, mentioned in the statement, presented or have any account in which campaign funds are retained, contrary to the reckless statement of Arabambi, and we dare him and/or anyone in his company to pursue this irresponsible allegation even to its judicial conclusion. “ It requires not much education or unearned academic titles but an Omoluwabi pedigree to appreciate that such criminal allegations be backed by credible evidence, particularly against persons of no criminal records, including an accomplished statesman who committed his resources, time and uncommon energy as a nonagenarian, mobilising Nigerians in conferences and campaign rallies, including resolution of crises created during and after the elections, by Arabambi’s penchant for divisions and factions.”
 
Similarly, a civil society group, Congress for Yoruba Nationalities (CROYN), has urged the leadership of the organisation to probe the Afenifere chieftains over the allegation by Arabambi.

The group, in a statement by its National President, Abiodun Fanoro, at the end of its meeting in Akure, Ondo State, noted that it was not in the culture of any responsible Yoruba son or daughter to start challenging persons who alleged, to prove the allegation, rather than suing for defamation of character.

PUBLICITY Secretary of the Abure faction, Obiora Ifoh, yesterday, in Abuja faulted the statement by Usman that the quick intervention of some leaders of the party at the September 4, 2024 stakeholders’ meeting in Umuahia, saved the party from being deregistered by INEC. He said, “We wish to state emphatically that LP is in good shape at the moment, having fully abided by the laws of the land, and therefore cannot be deregistered by INEC.
 
“These leaders have also mischievously leveraged INEC’s misinformed and erroneous disposition that the tenure of the party’s current executives has expired. It is paradoxical that some of these leaders, who were victims of INEC’s mismanagement of the 2023 general election, are now the ones quoting INEC, to victimise the leadership of LP.”
 
Ifoh stated, yesterday, that INEC’s actions were guided by Sections 82(1), 82(3) and 82(5) of the Electoral Act 2022, and Articles 7, 13(1), 13(1)(b)(ii), 13(1)(b)(viii), and 13(1)(ix) of the party’s constitution.
 
He added, “We are aware of all efforts by Usman and her co-travellers to pressure the INEC to cave in to their wishes and demands. But unknown to her, INEC as an institution is bound to respect the laws of the land as clearly stated in Sections 82(1), 82(3) and 82(5) of the Electoral Act, 2022 and Articles 7, 13(1), 13(1) (b) (ii), 13(1) (b) (viii) and 13 (1) () (ix) of the party constitution and cannot afford to act irrational even if it wants to.”