By Ademola tijani
The reorganization of the Labour Party has gained momentum with a formal notification to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from Abia State Governor Alex Otti and former presidential candidate Peter Obi, who last week led other party stakeholders to establish a 29-member caretaker committee tasked with organizing the party’s congresses and national convention.
Daily Query reports that a majority of former members of the National Working Committee (NWC) who were removed during the recent Abia stakeholders’ meeting, support the action taken by Governor Otti and Obi “in the interest of the party,” and have begun to distance themselves from Julius Abure-led NWC of the party, especially because they believe that their tenure has ended would not like to prolong a futile struggle, especially if it hinders the party’s progress.
To facilitate the transition to a new executive leadership, Otti and Obi, in a notification dated September 6, 2024 and co-signed by Otti and Obi, officially informed the INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, of the creation of the caretaker committee, which is to oversee the party’s congresses and convention within 180 days.
In their letter, they referenced the recent leadership crisis within the Labour Party (LP), which led to the de-recognition of the Abure-led NWC by INEC in June 2024, following a settlement arranged by INEC on June 27, 2022.
They noted that the settlement, based on a court judgment by Justice Gabriel Kolawole on March 20, 2018, required an all-inclusive national convention, preceded by ward, local government and state congresses, to be held within a year of the settlement agreement.
The letter highlighted that the implementation of this agreement was delayed by one year to 2024 due to the 2023 general election.
