Labour Party Heads to Supreme Court, Offers Free Forms for 2027 Elections

By Zainab Uzomah|Abuja

Factional National Chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure, has announced that the party has filed an appeal at the Supreme Court challenging the Appeal Court judgment on the party’s leadership crisis, insisting that his executive remains the legitimate leadership of the party.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, Abure said the party had already filed its notice of appeal and was awaiting the compilation of records to proceed with the matter at the apex court.

He described the ongoing crisis within the Labour Party as a deliberate attempt to weaken and destabilize the party following its performance in the 2023 general elections.

According to him, the executive led by him emerged from the party’s National Convention held in Nnewi on March 27, 2024, and all relevant documents from the convention were duly submitted to and accepted by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

Abure accused INEC of making a sudden reversalmonths later by questioning the tenure of the party leadership, a move he said triggered the internal crisis that led to the emergence of rival factions within the party.

The Labour Party chairman also dismissed the leadership claims of the faction led by Nenadi Usman, insisting that actions taken by the group, including notices to INEC and preparations for congresses and primaries, were illegal and unconstitutional.

Despite the court rulings, Abure declared that his faction would fully participate in the 2027 general elections and had commenced the distribution of nomination forms free of charge to aspirants across the country.

He said governorship and state assembly primaries would hold on May 27, while House of Representatives and Senate primaries arescheduled for May 29 through direct primaries at local government headquarters nationwide.

Abure also disclosed that the party plans to produce its presidential candidate through a consensus arrangement during a presidential primary scheduled to hold in Abuja on May 29.

He explained that the decision to offer free nomination forms was aimed at encouraging wider participation in politics and giving ordinary Nigerians the opportunity to contest elective offices without financial barriers.

According to him, the initiative reflects the ideology of the Labour Party and was similar to the approach adopted during the 2023 elections, which enabled several grassroots politicians to emerge victorious.

Abure further denied allegations that the party leadership demanded money from Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, during reconciliation talks.

He said discussions with the governor were strictly focused on resolving the party crisis and sharing political positions but failed because Governor Otti allegedly insisted on dissolving the existing party structure.

The Labour Party chairman maintained that no financial request or offer was made during the meeting and urged members to disregard reports suggesting otherwise.

He expressed confidence that the Supreme Court would eventually resolve the dispute in favour of his leadership while vowing that his faction would continue to function pending the court’s final decision.