The leadership crisis within the Labour Party intensified on Tuesday after factional National Chairman, Julius Abure, rejected a Court of Appeal ruling that affirmed Nenadi Usman as the party’s leader, vowing to challenge the decision at the Supreme Court.
In a statement issued in Abuja, Abure described the appellate court’s judgment as unacceptable, arguing that it contradicted established legal principles and the party’s internal procedures. He maintained that matters concerning party leadership should remain internal and outside judicial intervention.
According to him, “the judgment is against all known principles of law,” stressing that courts in Nigeria had consistently held that leadership disputes within political parties are internal affairs. He also dismissed claims that his executive tenure had expired, calling such assertions “untrue and unacceptable.”
Earlier in the day, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal unanimously dismissed Abure’s appeal, describing it as lacking merit and legal substance. The court upheld a prior ruling by the Federal High Court, which recognised Usman’s leadership.
Abure, however, insisted that the party’s convention held in Nnewi on March 27, 2024, produced a valid leadership with a four-year mandate, adding that the court failed to adequately consider this in its judgment. He also criticised the Umuahia meeting that led to the emergence of a caretaker committee, describing it as unconstitutional.
Reaffirming his position, Abure announced that his legal team had been mobilised to challenge the ruling at the Supreme Court.
The latest judgment marks a significant setback for Abure’s faction, as political and legal momentum continues to favour Usman’s camp. The crisis had taken a decisive turn earlier when the Independent National Electoral Commission formally recognised the Usman-led National Caretaker Committee as the party’s legitimate leadership, following a Federal High Court directive.
The commission subsequently updated its official records, replacing Abure’s name with Usman’s as Acting National Chairman, further cementing her faction’s position amid ongoing internal disputes that have plagued the party since the 2023 general elections.
