A fresh power tussle has erupted in the Labour Party as Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, and the party’s national leadership clash with embattled former National Chairman, Julius Abure, over sales of nomination forms ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Abure was accused of acting in defiance of court rulings and the position of the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The controversy followed photographs which went viral on social media showing Abure presenting what he described as Labour Party nomination forms to a former National Vice Chairman of the party, Ceekay Igara, and other party members in Abia State.
Reacting on Sunday, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Ken Asogwa, warned aspirants and party supporters against obtaining nomination forms from Abure, describing the documents as “worthless paper.”
He said, “Let it be stated clearly and unequivocally that Nenadi Usman is the National Chairman of the Labour Party, and all legitimate nomination forms for every elective position ahead of the 2027 general elections can only be obtained through the official national secretariat of the party located in Utako, Abuja.
“Consequently, any so-called Labour Party nomination form obtained from Julius Abure or any other unauthorised source is nothing but worthless paper being peddled by political fraudsters seeking to deceive unsuspecting persons.”
The party further questioned why Abure’s alleged sales activities were concentrated in Abia State, warning that Otti would not succumb to “blackmail, intimidation or street-corner political theatrics.”
It also accused Abure of criminal impersonation for continuing to parade himself as the party’s national chairman.
The warning came hours after Otti, through his Chief Press Secretary, Ukoha Ukoha, criticised Abure for continuing to issue nomination forms despite what he described as existing court rulings recognising Usman as the party’s interim leader.
Ukoha told our correspondent that both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal had ruled in favour of the Usman-led leadership structure, adding that INEC had already complied with the court directive.
He said, “I think Abure is in a better position to explain the grounds on which he is still parading himself after a Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal ruled that Senator Nenadi Usman was the interim leader of the Labour Party before the convention.
“So, the party has moved on. INEC has also complied with the directive of a competent court of jurisdiction. That is contempt of court on the part of Julius Abure.”
Ukoha also argued that INEC could not legitimately monitor any electoral process conducted under Abure’s authority.
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