The National Youth Leader of the Labour Party (LP), Kennedy Ahanotu, has faulted the appointment of a new interim leadership committee led by Senator Nenadi Usman as unconstitutional and illegal, insisting that the party’s leadership remains under Julius Abure.
Ahanotu, a loyalist of the Abure-led camp made the statement during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday.
His remarks come hours after the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), chaired by Abia State Governor Alex Otti, announced Usman as the Interim National Chairman and Senator Darlington Nwokocha as Interim National Secretary, among others, during a meeting held in Abuja.
The newly formed interim working committee is expected to manage party affairs until a national convention is held to elect a new executive. The NEC also reportedly approved a schedule for ward, local government, state, zonal congresses and the convention.
However, Ahanotu dismissed the entire process as a violation of both the Labour Party’s constitution and the Electoral Act.
“Our press statement is everywhere, and I am here to say that what they did is totally illegal and unacceptable by law. Let them show the portion of the Labour Party constitution or the Electoral Act that allows for the creation of an interim national working committee. There is none,” he stated.
The party youth leader further noted that this was not the first attempt to unseat Abure through alternate structures, labelling it a third failed attempt under a different name.
“They previously called it a National Transition Committee, and it failed. They called it a National Caretaker Committee, and that failed too. Now, this is the third time they are coming with an acronym — Interim National Working Committee. It is nowhere to be found in our documents.”
Weighing on Governor Alex Otti’s role in presiding over the NEC meeting, Ahanotu questioned the appropriateness of a sitting governor chairing national party meetings.
“How come that a governor elected under the platform of the party, who should have acted as an umbrella for everyone, took sides and is now chairing NEC meetings?” he queried.
“Can he chair the state executive council in Abia and also chair the Labour Party’s NEC? It’s wrong. No matter how big some of them are, what is wrong is wrong. Alex Otti is serving a suspension.”
Speaking on the validity of such NEC meetings, Ahanotu insisted that any meeting without statutory members is null and void, regardless of who convenes it.
“Any meeting convened without members of the statutory NEC is null and void. Even if it is called by the President or a governor, if it’s not in line with the Labour Party constitution and the Electoral Act, it remains null and void,” he stated.
Citing the recent Supreme Court judgment on the leadership matter, Ahanotu maintained that the court made it clear that internal party issues should not be decided by the judiciary but resolved internally.
“The Supreme Court judgement is very clear: no court in Nigeria has the right to wade into political party leadership issues. The party must go back into its house, resolve its problems, and stop disturbing the courts.”
‘No Attempt To Destroy Party’
When asked who the legitimate national chairman is, Ahanotu affirmed it was Abure, insisting that INEC has no power to remove him or determine the party’s leadership, as it must operate within the law and the Labour Party constitution.
“Abure, of course. And INEC cannot remove him. INEC must submit to the law; they are not above it.
“No matter how they play with the big and mighty, they must obey the Labour Party constitution and the Electoral Act. INEC has no right to choose leadership for the party,” he said.
Responding to accusations that the Abure camp is trying to destroy the party, Ahanotu said such claims are false and misinformed.
The youth leader attributed the ongoing conflict to ideological clashes caused by recent entrants into the party, comparing the situation to the PDP’s internal implosions.
“It’s unfortunate. We have a crop of people who joined the party with an elite mentality. They believe the Labour Party must be hijacked by them.
“The PDP allowed themselves to be played by one man. The high and mighty in the Labour Party must be humble enough to come into the room and say what they want. Because right now, we don’t even know what they want,” he said.
The Labour Party has been plagued by internal leadership tussles since the 2023 general elections, where Peter Obi emerged as its presidential candidate.
The party’s rising popularity has since been overshadowed by factional splits, particularly between the Julius Abure-led faction and a group aligned with Obi’s allies, which includes Senator Usman and Governor Otti.
The ongoing leadership battle has not only divided the party’s base but also cast uncertainty over its preparations for the forthcoming general elections in 2027.
