Supreme Court voids verdict recognising Abure as LP’s National Chairman

The Supreme Court, on Friday, nullified the judgement that recognised Mr. Julius Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party, LP.

In a unanimous decision, a five-man panel of the apex court vacated the January 17 judgement of Court of Appeal in Abuja, which validated Abure’s continued stay in office as National Chairman of the party.

According to the Supreme Court, the appellate court lacked the jurisdiction to enter any pronouncement in favour of Abure since it had earlier found that the subject matter of the dispute bordered on the leadership of a political party.

It held that the substance of the case centered on the domestic affair of a political party which no court has the powers to meddle into.

Consequently, the Supreme Court allowed an appeal that was filed by a former Minister of Finance, Senator Esther Nenadi Usman and Hon. Darlington Nwokocha, who are the Chairman and Secretary, respectively, of a Caretaker Committee that was earlier appointed to pilot the affairs of the party.

It will be recalled that following a leadership crisis that rocked the LP, the National Executive Committee, NEC, of the party resolved to remove Abure as the National Chairman.

To fill the leadership vacuum, the party constituted a 29-member caretaker committee, with the former Finance Minister, Senator Usman as Chairman and Hon. Nwokocha as Secretary.

The decision was the outcome of an expanded stakeholders’ meeting of the party that was hosted in Umuahia by governor Alex Otti of Abia State.

The meeting where Abure was sacked from office was chaired by his former ally and candidate of the party in the 2023 presidential election, Mr. Peter Obi.

Dissatisfied with the decision, Abure approached the Federal High Court in Abuja to validate his position as the National Chairman of the party.

In an affidavit he personally deposed to in support of the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1271/2024, Abure told the court that following the death of the National Chairman of the LP, he was lawfully elected as the Acting National Chairman of the party at a National Executive Council, NEC, meeting of the party that held in Benin City, Edo State, on March 29, 2021.

He told the court that on April 18, 2023, at the NEC meeting of the party held in Asaba, Delta State and duly monitored by INEC, it was resolved that tenures of State Chairmen whose tenures had expired, be renewed.

He said it was at the same meeting that some members that were engaged in anti-party activities were expelled and replacements for vacant positions created as a result of the expulsion, done.

Abure averred that in line with a consensus that was reached at the meeting, the party subsequently held its National Convention on March 27, 2024, at Nnewi, Anambra State, where we was lawfully elected to the office of National Chairman of the LP.