- Abure is Fifth Columnist, Says Activist
By Kolawole Ojebisi
The leadership tussle in the Labour Party (LP) took a dramatic twist on Monday as the National Chairman of the party, Julius Abure and LP presidential candidate in 2023 election, Peter Obi, simultaneously called for separate meetings of the National Executive Committee (NEC).
Both parties, in a terse statement made available to journalists, said the purpose of the meeting is to discuss the future of the party following Friday’s judgement by the Supreme Court.
While Abure’s NEC is scheduled to be held at the national headquarters, Obi and Governor Alex Otti moved their stakeholders’ summit to a different venue.
The statement signed by the National Publicity Secretary of LP, Obiora Ifoh, read, “PRESS INVITATION: The National Executive Committee meeting of the Labour Party held on Monday, April 7, 2025, at the National Party Secretariat.”
Barely an hour after Abure’s invite was released, Obi and Otti also sent out invitations calling for stakeholders’ engagement in what many believed was a counter-move to sway the loyalty of their supporters.
The statement signed by Obi’s Spokesman, Ibrahim Umar partly read, “The two leading figures of the Labour Party, the 2023 presidential flag bearer Peter Obi and the sole state governor of the party, Alex Oti of Abia State, have summoned the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party in Abuja on Wednesday, April 9, 2025.
“In a notice signed by the two men, the NEC meeting shall be followed concurrently by an interactive Town Hall Engagement with major stakeholders and other organs of the party at Transcorp Hilton Hotel.
“The stakeholders listed to attend the meeting include the vice presidential candidate for the 2023 election, serving and former senators and senatorial candidates of LP in the 2023 election, and serving and former members of House of Representatives and LP candidates in the 2023 election.”
However, this development is coming against the backdrop of accusations being leveled against Abure to the effect that he is a fifth columnist being used by government agents to attempt to destabilize the party.
According to Dr Austin Olusola, the Abure group are being used by external interests who are afraid of Obi’s capacity and political weight ahead 2027.
