Omotayo Adigun
The leadership dispute within the Labour Party (LP) intensified on Thursday as the faction loyal to Lamidi Apapa asserted his claim to the party’s leadership based on constitutional provisions, directly challenging a recently endorsed caretaker committee backed by key party stakeholders including presidential candidate Peter Obi.
Abayomi Arabambi, the National Publicity Secretary of the Apapa-led faction told Vanguard on Thursday that Comrade Apapa legally assumed the party’s leadership role. He argued this succession was triggered by a Supreme Court judgment which, according to Arabambi, removed Barrister Julius Abure as National Chairman.
Arabambi explained that the party’s constitution dictates that in the event of a vacancy in the National Chairman position (due to removal, resignation, or incapacitation), the Deputy National Chairman takes over. He identified Lamidi Apapa, the Deputy National Chairman (South), as the rightful successor under this provision, mandated to lead until a national convention is convened.
“Nature abhors a vacuum, and in our case in the Labour Party (LP), there is no vacuum at this stage because our constitution made adequate provision for this eventuality,” Arabambi stated.
He firmly rejected the legitimacy of any interim leadership structure, adding, “There is no provision for caretaker Committee or interim leadership or any name so-called outside of what our constitution stimulates.”
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He dismissed the recently affirmed Senator Nenadi Usman-led caretaker committee, labeling Usman and its proponents as “meddlesome interlopers who should not be taken seriously.”
This assertion comes less than 24 hours after prominent LP stakeholders, including Peter Obi and Abia State Governor Alex Otti, met and affirmed the Senator Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee. This committee was tasked with managing the party’s affairs until a national convention could be held to elect new leaders.
The stakeholders’ decision reportedly followed the release of a Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Supreme Court’s judgment concerning the leadership tussle involving Abure and Usman.