LP Factions in Open War Over INEC Chair

By Eshiorameh Sebastian

A deep schism within the Labour Party has erupted into open warfare, with two rival factions issuing starkly contradictory statements, one demanding the arrest of the Acting Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the other threatening disciplinary action with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).

The crisis centres on the legitimacy of the party’s leadership and the integrity of a court order cited by INEC.

The faction loyal to Senator Nenadi Usman has accused Mrs. May Agbamuche Mbu, INEC’s Acting Chairman, of “criminal collusion” with the party’s former National Chairman, Julius Abure.

In a press release Thursday, Senator Usman’s camp alleged that Mrs. Agbamuche Mbu attempted to justify a meeting with Mr. Abure by citing an alleged order from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Gwagwalada, which purportedly directed INEC to recognise him as the party’s chairman.

“Our independent and painstaking investigation has revealed that no such court order exists,” stated Ken Eluma Asogwa, Senior Special Adviser on Media to Senator Usman. He claimed a formal request for a Certified True Copy of the order was met with a “categorical confirmation from the court that no such order was ever granted.”

The statement described the episode as a “new low in the history of INEC” and labelled Mrs. Agbamuche-Mbu “a clear danger to Nigeria’s democracy.” It called for her “immediate arrest and prosecution for complicity in the criminal forgery of a court order” and directed supporters to begin mobilisation for a “peaceful occupation” of the INEC headquarters until their demands are met.

However, in a swift rebuttal, the faction led by Barrister Julius Abure condemned the allegations as “political zealotry” and an “abuse of privilege.” The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, disavowed Mr. Asogwa and Senator Usman, whom he described as “not a member of the Party.”

Mr Ifoh’s statement characterised the earlier press release as a “clear attempt to blackmail” INEC and its acting chairman for “obeying a validly issued court order.” It further accused Mr. Asogwa of “dragging the integrity of the court” into public disrepute.

“We have instructed our Counsel to write Mr. Asogwa, who is also a lawyer, to within the next 72 hours retract the highly offensive and embarrassing statement without which we will be left with no other choice but to petition him to the Nigerian Bar Association for describing a validly issued order of a court as FAKE,” the statement read.

The Abure-led faction accused the Usman camp of “bullying, blackmailing and intimidation” instead of providing a court order that supports their own claim to the chairmanship.

“To Nenadi Usman and her reggae boys, if things don’t go their way, they resort to gerrymandering and dancing naked,” Mr Ifoh stated.