The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC)’s appeal for the resignation of Labour Party (LP) National Chairman Julius Abure has gained support from former president Ayuba Wabba yesterday.
Wabba said Abure and his team were perpetrating illegality and that the LP had deviated from the founding fathers’ ideology.
He dismissed the allegation of an attempt to hijack LP levelled against NLC President Joe Ajaero, saying it was designed to whip up sentiment.
Wabba said Abure’s tenure had expired, and that a national convention cannot hold without ward and state congresses.
The ex-NLC president also insisted that the NLC owns the LP, which he said was a common global practice.
There was a protest on Wednesday at the Abuja LP headquarters by members of the Ajaero-led NLC.
The picketing, which continued at state branches yesterday, was to press home the demand by the NLC that the LP should put off its March 27 convention slated for Umuahia, the Abia State capital, and for Abure to resign.
But Abure described the picketing and the breakdown of the fence at the LP Headquarters, as a show of shame and an act of rascality and illegality.
An LP stalwart, Pat Utomi, urged parties to sheathe their sword.
He said the party must show that it is different from other parties.
Also yesterday, the Edo State NLC council accused Abure of running the LP as a personal business.
Wabba: LP, Abure must respect consent judgment
Wabba said Abure had committed several infractions against the spirit and the constitution of the party.
Backing workers for picketing LP secretariat, he said a police report indicted Abure.
This claim, however, could not be independently verified as to its veracity.
Speaking on a national television, Wabba maintained that the NLC owns the LP.
He dismissed allegations of illegality against Ajaero’s administration regarding the picketing.
Wabba said it was Abure and his followers who perpetrated illegality by planning a national convention without first holding ward and state congresses.
Wabba said: “We registered the party and we have with us the certificate of registration. So, NLC owns LP.
“Under my leadership, we had a dispute with the LP and it went to court. The court said NLC owns the LP.
“But, what we see now is that LP’s actions are against the spirit of the consent judgment of 27th of June, 2022.
“The LP needs to respect the sanctity of the consent agreement of June 27, 2002.
“Nobody builds a property, having the C of O and somebody is mismanaging the property and the owner keeps quiet? No, it doesn’t work that way.
“The present LP leadership has deviated from the original philosophy and ideology of the founding fathers and owners of the party and that is what NLC wanted to address.
“The allegation of hijacking LP is mere whipping up sentiment.
“What the NLC is saying is that the party is being mismanaged and the owner rose up to put things straight.
“If there must be peace and stability in the party, all the terms and conditions in the consent agreement must be respected.
“The term of Julius Abure as the chairman of LP has long expired.
“When that agreement was signed on June 27, 2022, a year after, the national convention ought to have taken place.
“In clear terms and in consonance with the terms of the agreement, Abure’s term has expired. He has overstayed and should leave the stage.
“Second, the party cannot conduct a national convention without conducting transparent ward and state congresses first.
“From the police investigation, Abure has been indicted and it has been established that there are fraudulent practices in the LP.
“Some infringements have been committed and the people should allow the police to do their job.”
‘Abure running LP as personal business’
The Edo NLC chapter accused Abure of running a one-man show.
Picketing the state’s secretariat in Benin, the members alleged financial rascality and contempt of the congress.
The Vice Chairman, Suleiman Abubakar, said the LP belonged to the congress, so the NLC ought to be carried along in every decision.
Abubakar said: “We were directed across the 36 states of Nigeria to picket all LP’s offices.
“We ought to have done the picketing on Wednesday, as directed by the Political Commission of NLC, but because we were unable to mobilise our members, we decided to shift it to today (Thursday).
“Abure is running LP as his personal property. Everybody should be carried along.
“Abure has announced the date for LP’s national convention.
“He wants to hand-pick and impose a candidate on us. This is not the time to hand-pick and impose anybody.
“The way forward is for Abure to go to the national level and resolve his differences with the leaders.
“He must learn to play by the rules of the game. We are not being sponsored, nobody is sponsoring us.”
Edo LP Publicity Secretary, Sam Uropka, said NLC had abandoned its primary responsibility to Nigerian workers by chasing shadows at a time when the workers were suffering and dying of hunger.
Abure: NLC was carried alone
Abure, in a statement by the Acting National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, denied running a one-man show.
He said the party leadership informed all the stakeholders, including the NLC, about the forthcoming conference.
Abure said he had discussions with Ajaero many times, insisting the leadership of the party would not allow him to hijack the party.
The statement reads: “What we saw was a show of shame, a show of rascality, an abuse of office and an abuse of the law of the land.
“NLC is subject to the law. NLC under Joe Ajaero is not above the law and the law precludes Ajaero and the leadership of NLC from taking the law into their hands.
“They besieged the office, broke the fence, destroyed the gates, unlawfully took possession of the Secretariat and destroyed properties worth millions of naira.”
“Properties were stolen, including monies made for the payment of salaries and other official purposes. This is unfortunate. It is becoming unbecoming.
“The leadership of NLC under Joe Ajaero is on the path of destroying the successes we have recorded in the 2023 general election.
“I had expected that as a responsible trade union centre, a responsible labour leader, he should have teamed up with the LP to see how we can team up together to make the country better.
“Unfortunately and ironically too, the NLC is the one that is on warpath against the LP.
“I must state clearly that Ajaero as NLC President has not been able to organise a successful strike action, not even a single protest or even picketing government establishment to bring the government to accede to the numerous requests of workers.
“As we speak, there are unfair labour practices meted out to workers by several organisations in the country.
“I have not seen Joe Ajaero go to such organisations to picket them.
“Over the past few years, NLC has been claiming ownership of the LP. I must state clearly that NLC is not the owner of LP. The party is not owned by NLC.”
Abure argued that the NLC can only picket the office of an employer.
The statement added: “The law is very clear that you cannot picket an organisation where you do not have your workers.
“We are not the employers of NLC and they don’t have a legitimate reason to picket our office. We have no trade union dispute with NLC.
“There is no notice issued to us that we have a trade union dispute with NLC. This is clearly an abuse of office and an abuse of the laws of the land.
“The propaganda they have been carrying around that we are planning a secret convention is totally false.
“The NEC met in April 2023 in Asaba and granted the permission that the convention must be held in one year. We started planning for the Convention since then.
“We communicated with INEC as requested by the law. We have also informed all the stakeholders, including NLC. I have discussed the issue with Ajaero on several occasions.
“NLC on their own has written to INEC on several occasions on the need to hold the convention.
“We are surprised that the same NLC is asking that that convention should not be held.
“He has ulterior motives and we will not allow him to hijack the party.”
Utomi: LP should be different
In posts on X, formerly Twitter, Utomi said the LP should not force out its leaders as does other parties.
He, however, said a change could be beneficial to the party.
Utomi stated: “Change brings good health to most organisations. This is why the ICANs have short-term presidents.
“All need to share in the values which govern renewal and why it is for the common good.
“Egos need to be shelved when the good of all comes into play. None should lose dignity for that.
“The LP must show that it can be different. If APC and PDP hound chairmen out for designs of the monied, Labour must look at what is good for the man in the street, the small business person and the future of a country that just dropped out of the top 10 in Africa by IMF.
“I call on all the actors to cease and desist from press releases.
“If we commit to a shared goal, and build on the common good, a clear vision will emerge and enable sacrifice by all.
“The NCFront which worked with NLC and several parties for the third force must now be the conciliator
“The NLC has a duty to the Fabian Socialism that gave Justice to Britain.
“Abure needs to yield to the grace that thrust him into a great moment in history.
“The traditional LP apparatchik must learn that without inclusion they will be pigmies for life. Win-win is possible.”
(Text excluding headlines: The Nation)