The factional National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Julius Abure, has called on Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, to stop misleading the public about his membership in the party. He urged the governor to formally leave the LP and join the coalition party with Peter Obi under the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
In a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, Abure accused Otti of working behind the scenes with the opposition faction while claiming loyalty to the Labour Party. He cited Otti’s alleged involvement in forming and funding the LP caretaker committee that has now merged with the ADC.
“Our attention has been drawn to Otti’s interview where he said he is still in Labour Party,” Abure said. “But how can that be when he conducted the last local government elections in Abia under Zenith Labour Party?”
He further accused Otti of anti-party activities and said the governor had already been suspended indefinitely from the party.
Abure stressed that the Labour Party is focused on rebuilding ahead of the 2027 elections and would not entertain politicians whose interests are not aligned with the party’s values. He dismissed political coalitions as selfish power grabs with no ideological direction.
“Labour Party is not and cannot be in any coalition,” he said. “We are in a hurry to sanitize the party of people without character.”
Governor Otti had earlier stated that he remains a member of the Labour Party and has no plans to join any coalition, despite the movement of his faction, led by Nenadi Usman and former presidential candidate Peter Obi, into the ADC-backed coalition.
The disagreement is the latest in the ongoing internal crisis within the Labour Party, which has been facing factional disputes and leadership wrangles since after the 2023 general elections.
