Hot Source*Says vacuum exists in LP leadership
*Party dismisses claims of Abure’s derecognition as national chairman
Chuks Okocha in Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has told a Federal High Court in Abuja that the Julius Abure-led faction of the Labour Party (LP) does not have the necessary rights to field candidates for positions in yesterday’s by-elections across the country.
INEC also told the court that with the recent judgment of the Supreme Court, there is currently a vacuum in the leadership of the LP.
This is as the faction dismissed reports that INEC no longer recognises Abure as national chairman, and also accused the Senator Nenadi Usman-led faction of the party of being behind the “propaganda”.
Responding to the suit filed before the court by the Abure-led faction of the LP, INEC told the court that since Abure’s tenure as national chairman of the party has lapsed, he cannot sign nomination forms for the party’s candidates in yesterday’s by-elections across the country.
The LP, which came third in the 2023 presidential election, has been enmeshed in leadership tussles between Abure-led National Working Committee (NWC) and Senator Nenadi Usman.
The unresolved leadership issues resulted in the rejection of a list of the party’s candidates submitted by Abure for yesterday’s by-elections in the country.
Aggrieved by the exclusion of LP’s candidates, Abure had in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1523/2025, challenged the powers of the electoral umpire to exclude the party’s candidates from the polls.
But in its response to the court action, INEC insisted that the tenure of the National Executive Committee (NEC) led by Abure had expired, adding that by a recent judgment of the Supreme Court, there exists presently a vacuum in the leadership of the LP.
The commission, in a counter-affidavit to the originating summons by Abure, pointed out that it did not monitor a purported National Convention of the plaintiff held on March 27, 2024, at Nnewi in Anambra State, where Abure claimed that he and other members of his National Executive Committee were re-elected.
The electoral body argued that the convention “was conducted in contravention of the Constitution of the Federal Republic, 1999 (as amended), the Electoral Act, 2022, Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties 2022 issued by the Commission and the plaintiff’s Constitution 2019.”
Arguing further, INEC told the Federal High Court that based on the Supreme Court’s verdict, “the plaintiff cannot convene valid primaries to field candidates for the upcoming 2025 by-elections in to the various constituencies scheduled to hold on 16/08/2025 under the leadership of Julius Abure who is no longer the National Chairman of the plaintiff as held by Supreme Court.
Listing its powers as donated by the Constitution and the Electoral Act, INEC stated that, “any notice or correspondence from a political party to the defendant must be jointly signed by the valid and subsisting National Chairman and National Secretary of a political party.”
INEC submitted that, “as at the date by-election was given, the Court of Appeal judgment by which Julius Abure was recognised as the National Chairman of the Plaintiff was set aside by the Supreme Court”.
The electoral umpire further claimed that contrary to the plaintiff, the notice of the LP’s primaries for the nomination of its candidates for by-elections “was signed by Julius Abure and one Alhaji Umar Faruk Ibrahim, who were not the National Chairman and National Secretary of the plaintiff”.
”INEC neither monitored nor recognised the purported congresses and primaries of the plaintiff for the FCT by-election, having been convened by Julius Abure, who was not a valid National Chairman of the plaintiff.”
INEC insisted that it cannot accept and issue an access code for upload of candidates’ nomination forms EC9, EC9F, and EC9G for the by-elections to the plaintiff, as there were no valid national officers to conduct valid primaries and validly submit the nomination forms to the electoral body.
The commission clarified that its refusal to invite the LP for refresher training for political parties on uploading to the defendant’s Candidates Nomination Portal (INCP) and other activities of the commission was due to the leadership vacuum in the management of the LP, which exists under the Supreme Court’s judgment.
INEC, while urging for the dismissal of the suit, stated that it would serve the interest of justice to refuse the reliefs sought by the plaintiff.
Party Dismisses Claims of Abure’s Derecognition as National Chairman
Meanwhile, the Abure-led faction has dismissed reports that INEC no longer recognises him as National Chairman.
The Spokesman of the faction, Mr. Obiora Ifoh, alleged that the Nenadi Usman-led faction was behind the “propaganda”.
He claimed that the Federal High Court’s decisions of August 15, 2025, were allegedly misinterpreted to suit this narrative.
Ifoh said: “For the record, two cases concerning the Labour Party were decided and dismissed yesterday by the same court.
“One by Nenadi Usman through one Chris Omofuma, her purported candidate in the Edo by-election, and of course, the one filed by Labour Party through Barrister Julius Abure.
“INEC was the respondent in all the matters. While INEC for obvious reasons refused to put up any counter against Nenadi’s camp, it however, deposed to a counter affidavit in opposition to Abure’s suit, on the premise that it neither monitored nor recognised the March 27, 2024, convention in Nnewi, and that Abure’s tenure, along with that of the National Executive Committee, according to their illusions, expired in June 2024.
“The court wasted no time in dismissing the suit by Ms Nenadi Usman through Chris Omofume on the ground that both Nenadi Usman and Darlington Nwokocha were not National Chairman and National Secretary, respectively, of the party and therefore are not competent to nominate a candidate for the bye-election.
“The court also, while dismissing the suit by Abure and the Labour Party, held that it lacked jurisdiction to entertain the matter, noting that the Supreme Court had, in its April 4, 2025, decision in Appeal No. SC/CV/56/2025 ruled on the supremacy of the party and its ability to resolve its internal affairs using the party’s internal mechanism.
“In any event, the Supreme Court never said that Abure was not the National Chairman of the Labour Party nor made a pronouncement on the convention. It only said that the issue of leadership is an internal affair of the party. It is also clear that the Abure’s leadership is the party here, and that is what the apex court referred to.
“Disappointed by the judgment of the Court, Nenadi Usman and her power-mongering renegades went to town publishing INEC’s counter-affidavit, which the court never relied on.
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