LP crisis persists despite court order as Abure-led faction flays secretariat takeover

The Julius Abure-led faction of the Labour Party has condemned what it described as an unlawful takeover of the party’s National Secretariat by the Nenadi Usman-led interim leadership. The faction accused Abia State Deputy Governor Ikechukwu Emetu, Senator Nenadi Usman, and others of forcibly entering the secretariat, seizing party property, and barring staff from accessing offices.

According to Obiorah Ifoh, spokesperson for the Abure faction, the takeover occurred in the early hours of Tuesday, with hoodlums allegedly pulling down the party’s billboards and replacing them with those bearing Senator Usman’s name. Ifoh said eight truckloads of police accompanied the intruders, ensuring that only members of the Nenadi-led camp gained entry.

“The Abure-led leadership is dumbfounded by the invasion of its secretariat by the Nenadi camp, aided by police in the early hours of Tuesday. Senator Usman, accompanied by the Abia State Deputy Governor, ordered his hoodlums to break into all offices and cart away files and other materials,” Ifoh said.

He added that senior party officials who attempted to enter the offices were blocked by security operatives. “We refused to confront them to avoid clashes, choosing a peaceful approach,” he said.

Ifoh stressed that a Federal High Court in the FCT had earlier recognised Senator Usman as interim chairman. However, the Abure-led leadership had obtained a stay of execution and filed an appeal, making any self-help takeover “inappropriate and needless.”

The faction called on the police, the Department of State Security, the Office of the National Security Adviser, and other relevant agencies to investigate the incident. Ifoh warned that if unchecked, such actions threaten democracy and its institutions, urging party faithful to remain vigilant as the leadership pursues justice through legal channels.