Labour Party has been ‘liberated’ by Obi’s defection to ADC – Abure

The Julius Abure-led National Working Committee of the Labour Party has described the defection of its 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as a liberation, saying it regrets fielding him in the last general election. In a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday, December 31, the partys National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, said Obis exit only confirmed what the leadership claimed had already happened internally amid the partys prolonged leadership crisis. The leadership of the Labour Party took note of the defection of its 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi and a few of his supporters to the African Democratic Congress. We also took note of the lacklustre speech Obi made at the occasion, and wondered what new things he intends to sell to Nigerians. For us in the Labour Party, we wondered why it took them this long to make the move because we have, since September 2024, parted ways with Peter Obi and some of his blind supporters in the National Assembly. We have patiently waited for this day. The party is finally liberated by this defection and as Party leaders, we count it as a blessing, he said, Ifoh said the party had repeatedly urged Obi and his loyalists to leave if they could not work with the Abure-led leadership, adding that disciplinary steps had already been taken against some lawmakers aligned with the former presidential candidate. It will be on record that the leadership of the Labour Party had since urged Obi and his disgruntled followers to exit the party if they were unable to work with the leadership of the party. As a matter of fact, the party had suspended many of the lawmakers for anti-party activities and was clearly going to mete the same treatment on the presidential candidate but for the intervention of some well-meaning Nigerians, he stated. The statement also accused Obi and Abia State Governor Alex Otti of contributing to the internal crisis, claiming they sponsored efforts to unseat the partys current leadership. The Labour Party said it expected Otti to follow Obi out of the party, but claimed he remained around despite being suspended. We had also expected Governor Otti to follow Obi out of the party. We are surprised that even though he has been suspended from the party, he is still loitering around. It is still not too late for him to follow his political leader, the statement added. The party further dismissed Obis defection rally in Enugu as poorly attended and claimed it was boycotted by prominent political and traditional stakeholders in the South-East. He said, The party also warned that the charade which took place today in Enugu was largely boycotted by prominent political and traditional institutions in the South East. All we saw were mere political spent forces who cannot win in their wards should there be an election today. This is clearly a danger signal that the Obi presidency (or Vice Presidency) is already a failed project from inception. He has clearly lost the charm that had endeared him to the people before 2023. In a sweeping criticism, the Abure-led leadership argued that Obis 2023 presidential bid contributed to what it described as the South-Easts marginal presence under President Bola Tinubus administration, alleging the region received fewer ministerial slots and continued to face marginalisation in infrastructure allocation. He must be told that the South East lost out completely in President Tinubus government because they trusted and believed in him in 2023. While some states of the federation boast as many as five ministers, all the states in the South East were given a paltry five ministerial slots. The marginalisation against the zone has continued even in infrastructure allocation and I wonder if the Southeast will repeat the same political harakiri. The party asks forgiveness from Nigerians for fielding unfitting presidential candidate in 2023, he said. The party concluded by asking Nigerians for forgiveness and said it was preparing what it described as a better alternative ahead of future elections. Finally, we urge Nigerians to watch out for the Labour Party. We gave Nigerians a candidate we thought was good for the nation in 2023, but time has since proved that we made the greatest political mistake. We plead for forgiveness from Nigerians. We are already working out the best prospect that we hope will bring Nigeria back to its glorious days, he noted. Obi had earlier announced his defection to the ADC at an event held at the Nike Lake Resort in Enugu State, where he called on Nigerians and opposition forces to unite under a broad national coalition to rescue Nigeria from poverty, disunity and democratic decline.The post Labour Party has been liberated by Obis defection to ADC – Abure appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.