The Labour Party (LP) has disowned the purported National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, held in Bauchi State, describing it as illegal.
The party held an expanded meeting on Wednesday with all 36 States chairmen and Secretaries at its headquarters in Abuja to prove that its estranged members claiming to be holding a National Executive Council Meeting in Bauchi are fake.
Addressing journalists, the acting National Publicity Secretary of the party, Obiorah Ifoh, said the Apapa-led faction is being sponsored by some governors from other political party to destabilize Labour Party.
“In furtherance of the directives from their paymasters, about six of our former but suspended members of the National Working Committee of our party, The Labour Party are meeting in Bauchi for a fake and unlawful National Executive Council (NEC).
“Surprisingly, this is coming barely two weeks after the party held its very successful NEC meeting in Asaba, Delta state that was attended by virtually all NEC members including 36 state chairmen and Secretaries, all members of the National Working Committee, most of the elected members of the national assembly, leader and presidential candidate of the party, Mr. Peter Obi, party trustees including the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) amongst others.
“One of the invitees of the purported NEC is our leader and presidential candidate, Peter Obi who incidentally on Monday was on national television where he referred to these characters as paid agents and hirelings. He also made it clear that he had never met with Apapa and that there were no issues in the party and that the reported crisis is just the “rascality” by paid agents bent on derailing the party to pursue justice. He said, “In the Labour Party, we have no issue. Bar Julius Abure is our chairman and those things you’re seeing are just the handiwork of paid agents who are trying to create confusion.”
“They also invited the state chairmen of our party to their meeting. Gentlemen of the Press, seated here in this hall are all the state chairmen of our party across all the 36 states and FCT. Only last night, all our 36 member-elect of the House of Representatives and our 8 Senator-elect were represented in a caucus meeting held with the National Working Committee. Then again, I ask, who are these NEC members they are hoping to attend their jamboree in Bauchi?
“Article 13:2A of our party constitution is clear on the composition of the Labour Party NEC. They include our state Chairmen and Secretaries, and all other officers as have been mentioned above. The constitution did not state that expelled and suspended officers of the party shall convene a NEC of the party. In their desperation to satisfy their paymasters who we have already established to be two governors; one from South West and another from South East, while also using a top member of the APC National Working Committee who go in between them, this transactional arrangement will see them recruiting their usual customers; touts, market women, street hawkers.and people who are not members of the party. We also have it on a reliable source that they will attempt to have a blanket suspension of all our elected members of our NWC, a power that is alien and unheard of. They have also been dangling carrots to some of our leaders to either join them or be suspended,” Ifoh said while described the Bauchi NEC meeting as illegal.
Also speaking, the most senior deputy Chairman of the Labour Party, Comrade Ladi Iliya, who presided a meeting With all the state Chairmen, said they will ensure that any state chairman that attends the Bauchi NEC meeting is suspended.
According to her, Labour Party is one adding that what Apapa led group is doing is unknown to the law.
Also speaking, a spokesman of the Obi/Datti campaign council, Kenneth Okonkwo, said the Apapa-led group is not a faction, calling on Nigerians to stop referring to them as a faction of the labour party.
Kenneth said the people involved have been either suspended or expelled from the party adding that there is nothing that warrants people to be refer to the Apapa-led group a faction.