Posted by The All Progressives Congress (APC) is not supported by the Labour Party (LP), according to Lamidi Bashir Apapa, national vice-chairman for the South and acting party chairman who took over for Julius Abure, who was suspended.
Following an urgent meeting held at the Party’s secretariat in Abuja, the National Working Committee (NWC) of the LP named Apapa as acting national chairman on Thursday.
In a conversation with ThisDay, Apapa refuted the rumors that he was supported to thwart the LP’s Peter Obi’s efforts to file a petition with the Election Petition Tribunal.
He claimed that he took control of the Party’s affairs to prevent a power vacuum and that he and the other members of the National Working Committee of the Party had no intention of “witch-hunting anyone, but to work in accordance with the provisions of the law. They didn’t want to commit crimes, he said, so he explained that.
“It is our responsibility to take the necessary steps to ensure that none of us are viewed as forgers if a party leader has been charged with forgery. We are in charge because we want things done correctly, he continued.
According to Apapa, they “became irritated when an Abuja High Court ruled that Abure, the national secretary, and one other officer who were signatories to the party’s account should not parade themselves as officials of the party because of the offence of forgery and perjury. “.
“That order had no restrictions, and we can’t let there be a void. When he is unable to perform his duties, we cannot allow a void to exist.
“We’re all there in an acting capacity. We won’t have a problem if he can figure out how to get rid of that order. His first task is that, said Apapa.
He claimed this was disproving his alleged affiliation with the powerful APC.
“It’s not at all true. The APC presidential candidate and I don’t do business. I want to tell Nigerians that if anyone has information about that case, please share it. Our contender is Peter Obi. More than 20 years ago, I joined the party. I joined the Labour Party in the very beginning. “.
He acknowledged that over the years leading up to his election as the deputy national chairman and current acting party chairman, he had held a number of positions within the Party.
“I have never been a member of any party besides the Labour Party. I was one of the party’s original officers. I cannot build a house and then turn around and destroy it. Obi is our candidate, and we will take any action that can be taken to help him and the party. “.
Apapa continued to be optimistic that the Party would recover better and stronger.
“I urge patience from Nigerians. Simply put, this is a temporary crisis that will pass. Everyone is eager to join us because the Labour Party is currently a party to be defeated.
They shouldn’t get too carried away because a political party crisis is common. While some people are there to create, others are there to destroy. Our goal is to strengthen the party, not to demolish it, said Apapa.
However, Abure continues to serve as the national chairman of the Labor Party, according to the 36 state chairmen of the party, including its youth wing, who gathered in Abuja over the weekend at the national headquarters of the party.
Rotimi Kehinde, the chairman of the Chairmen Forum, stated that they had decided that Abure would continue to serve as the national chairman of LP in a communique issued by the 36 chairmen of LP yesterday across the federation, including FCT.
The chairmen criticized Apapa and his group’s actions, which they deemed intolerable.
They stated that those who “grossly violated the provision of our Party’s constitution and brought internal party matters before the court without using all appropriate established channels to resolving disputes and went ahead to court are by the dint of this communiqué directed to immediately effect withdrawal of the matter from the court and return to the path of rectitude for due process.”. ”.
They suggested that an immediate call for a meeting of the Party’s National Executive Committee be made.