By Our Reporter
The House of Representatives Labour Party Caucus, has described as laughable, naive and misleading, the purported appointment of another lawmaker as caucus Leader by the embattled former national chairman of the party, Barrister Julius Abure.
In response to an earlier statement by the caucus which welcomed last Friday’s Supreme Court judgment and indicated willingness to work for the internal peace and progress of the party under the leadership of the National Caretaker Committee NCC, led by Senator Esther Nenadi Usman, Abure yesterday announced the ‘sacking’ of Hon. Afam Victor Ogene as the caucus leader.
But the Labour Party Reps have emphasized that the position of a caucus Leader is not an office based on appointment; rather the Leader is chosen/elected by peers based on their own conviction of his/her leadership qualities and capacity to speak on their behalf in the overall interest of the party and the people they represent.
The caucus made this clarification in a statement on Tuesday, in response to several inquiries from the media and other party faithful arising from developments after the Supreme Court pronouncement sacking the LP chairman.
They stated that on May 6, 2023, a 35-member Labour Party caucus in the 10th Assembly of the House of Representatives elected Hon. Afam Victor Ogene as its Leader. Ogene, a ranking member from the 7th Assembly, emerged as the Labour Party leader with 21 votes, after a keenly contested election.
Although 34 Members-Elect of the Party were present at the voting session, only 31 of them took part in the exercise with the trio of Honourables Okey-Joe Onuakalusi, Obi Aguocha and Professor Lilian Oby Orogbu abstaining, being persons who conducted the exercise.
So, it’s only the members of the caucus who overwhelmingly elected him, that have the right to remove him as leader, not “an authoritarian power thirsty individual that’s still battling, without much success, to extricate himself from the muddy waters of multiple allegations of malfeasance,” the caucus said in a statement signed by Hon. Ogene on Tuesday.
It said further: “If Abure’s latest ill-advised tactics is because of the stand of the Caucus lauding the judgement of the Supreme court, which unequivocally declared that Abure’s tenure has long lapsed, then he is way off-mark, because that remains the majority position of LP House of Representatives members – a fact that would be reinforced on Wednesday, April 9, by the number of legislators that will attend the NEC/Stakeholders meeting convened by the Party’s National Leader, Mr. Peter Obi and Governor Alex Otti.
“We need to let Abure know, and boldly too, that the Labour Party is a credible organization and not a ponzi scheme, because sadly, everything about his leadership style is all about forgery, money and more money. From Ebonyi, to Plateau, Ondo, Edo (where he embarrassed the party through his undignified episodes with the police), it’s all about slush funds and compromise of the integrity of the office of a party national chairman. Even in Anambra last week, the mention of the name Abure, has continued to emit a putrid smell of financial malfeasance.
“He may wish to tell Nigerians, and the world, what is at the centre of his feud with Eze Oko Splendour of Ebonyi State, Kenneth Imasuagbon in Edo, and the aspirants that took part in last weekend’s Anambra LP gubernatorial farce.
“It is appalling that a man who is yet to account for Party finances arising from the 2023 general elections, nor leaves any penny in the party’s account – despite raising hundreds of million naira in sale of forms and other gratifications in several off-season elections – would be so engrossed in wanting to access funds belonging to the House of Representatives Caucus, which only points to the depths Abure can go to in search of free funds to fund his new-found lifestyle.
“Ironically, no sane organ of the party would entrust the Supreme Court-sacked former national chairman with money, no matter how little, at least, until he is able to cleanse himself of the twin evil of allegations of forgery and pilfering party funds levied against him by former national treasurer of the LP, Oluchi Oparah. Funds belonging to the caucus are intact, and would only be deployed in a manner prescribed by members, not by the former chairman’s discretion.
“The Labour Party deserves a clean break from that integrity-deficient leadership history, to a future that all party faithful will be proud to associate with.”