By Jonathan Lois
The Labour Party has dismissed claims by a group led by Julius Abure, accusing it of misrepresenting the position of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the party’s leadership.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday, January 12, 2026, and signed by the National Secretary, Senator Darlington Nwokocha, the party said a recent publication attributed to former members loyal to Abure deliberately distorted INEC’s clarification on the leadership crisis within the party.
The party said INEC’s statement of January 7, 2026, clearly reaffirmed the Supreme Court judgment of April 4, 2025, which, according to it, recognised Senator Nenadi Usman as National Chairman and Senator Darlington Nwokocha as National Secretary of the Labour Party.
According to the statement, INEC warned Abure and his associates to stop parading themselves as representatives of the party, noting that their actions had contributed to a prolonged leadership crisis since 2024.
The Labour Party quoted INEC as saying the Supreme Court had ruled that the tenure of the Abure-led National Executive Committee had expired, adding that despite the ruling, the faction went ahead to conduct primaries for the August 16, 2025 bye-elections and FCT Area Council elections.
INEC also recalled a Federal High Court judgment of August 15, 2025, which dismissed a suit filed by the Abure-led faction challenging INEC’s decision to exclude it from the bye-elections, thereby upholding the Supreme Court’s position that Abure was no longer recognised as national chairman.
The party further alleged that Abure and his associates had filed more than 20 court cases against INEC and the current Labour Party leadership across various courts, describing the actions as an abuse of court process aimed at destabilising the party.
It rejected claims that the new leadership of INEC had recognised Abure, stating that INEC only drew his attention to existing court judgments that removed him from office. The party said INEC refused to issue access codes for uploading candidates’ names submitted by the Abure faction in compliance with those judgments.
The statement also dismissed claims that the new INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, invited Abure to a consultative meeting of political party leaders, insisting that no such invitation was extended.
Reacting to comments attributed to Abure against the National Secretary, the party revisited the 2023 Abia Central senatorial nomination, alleging that attempts were made to frustrate Nwokocha’s candidacy until a court judgment compelled INEC to recognise him as the party’s candidate. It said Nwokocha later won the election and went on to serve as Minority Whip of the 10th Senate.
Reaffirming its position, the Labour Party said it was united under the leadership of Dr. Alex Otti as National Leader, Senator Nenadi Usman as National Chairman, and Senator Darlington Nwokocha as National Secretary.
The party urged its members, particularly youths, women and aspirants ahead of the 2027 elections, to remain focused, while calling on relevant authorities to act on allegations against Abure.
“The Labour Party is not for sale,” the statement said, adding that the party remained committed to building a Nigeria anchored on justice, equity and good governance.
