Court Sacks Abure as Labour Party Chair, Recognizes Apapa, Orders INEC To Publish Apapa Faction’s Candidates

…Orders INEC to recognise Apapa-led NWC governorship candidates

The Court of Appeal in Owerri, Imo State, has ruled on Thursday to remove Julius Abure from his position and officially recognize Lamido Apapa as the National Chairman of the Labour Party.

Furthermore, the court has directed the Independent National Electoral Commission to promptly acknowledge and publish the names of all governorship candidates endorsed by the Apapa-led National Working Committee in Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi states.

This ruling also entails the dismissal of Senator Athan Achonu’s candidacy for the governorship of Imo State, as well as those aligned with the Abure-led faction of the LP.

In April, Apapa emphasized that his suspension as a party member lacked validity, reiterating his status as the rightful acting chairman.

However, a significant development occurred on August 14, when a Court of Appeal session in Benin City, Edo State, upheld Abure’s position as the National Chairman of the Labour Party. The statement confirming this was issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh.

Recall that a State High Court in Edo dismissed the suspension notice against Abure, which had been issued by certain party members at the ward level. The case was dismissed by Justice Emmanuel Aihamoje on the grounds of lacking merit.