THE EXPECTATIONS OF CITIZENS FROM THE LABOUR PARTY, LP AS NATIONAL CONGRESS AND CONVENTION SETS IN 2025

By Evang. (Engr.) Chinedu Jude Eloka.

Immediate Past Assistant LP National Youth Leader

1. The major significance of congresses at the: wards, LGAs & states levels with delegates elections prepares political parties for their national conventions marking the end of a tenure after a transition and  beginning of a new tenure of three (3) years for the states, LGAs and wards and four (4) years for the National Working Committee, NWC.

2. The political processes that culminate in congresses and national conventions bring lasting peace in political parties that have experienced:

– warring factions,

– divisions,

– disintegration and

– disunity among its members and thereby signaling the harmonization phase in political parties as congresses and convention are a statutory process done in line with the party’s constitution and rule of law to usher in brand new leadership of the party at all levels.

3. Before national convention, all leadership cadres in the party are always dissolved and interim leadership are set up for the party at all levels and saddled with the responsibility of ushering in the party into a new phase of law and constitution and ratified by the National Executive Council, NEC members of the party.

4. Congresses are conducted within the state levels while conventions are conducted at the national level. The nexus between congress and convention is the nomination or election of delegates in all the 36 States and Abuja, FCT who will then elect members of the National Working Committee, NWC for a four (4) years tenure and Presidential Candidates of the party.

5. Congresses are intended to install the permanent structures of the party from wards, LGAs and States in the State Executive Council, SEC and also elect delegates for national convention from the States.

6. The congresses and convention exercises starts from the ward level using ward stakeholders and delegate to build the permanent structure of the party to the national level.

7. Congresses and convention foster a national spread in the leadership of the party with the inclusion of the right representation of the leadership of the party from among the divides or the ranks of the party.

8. The various leadership cadres of the party are:

– Ward Stakeholders,

– Ward Congress,

– Ward Executives,

– Ward Delegates,

– Local Government Stakeholders,

– Local Government Congress,

– Local Government Working Committee,

– Local Government Executive Committee and

– Local Government Delegates.

9. At the state level are:

– State Stakeholders,

– State Congress,

– State Working Committee,

– State Executive Committee and

– State Delegates.

10. At the national level are:

– National Stakeholders,

– National Convention,

– National Executive Council, NEC

– National Working Committee, NWC and

– Board of Trustees, BoT of the party.

11. All the processes start from the ward level up to the national level. The outcome being the permanent structure of the party. During the setting-out phase of congresses and convention, the party has no substantive leadership structure.

12. All the stakeholders can vie for any leadership position in the party as far as he or she meets the constitutional requirements as stipulated by the party’s national interim leadership.

13. Working Committees (Article 20 page 34, 2019 LP constitution) are always constituted from convention and party organs to run the party in standing and ad-hoc capacity and in the event of vacuum created by transition from one tenure to another or under a subsisting NEC in the case of the Labour Party LP scenarios for which all tenure expired on 8th June 2024.

14. The import of congresses and convention is the strengthening of the internal structure of the party. The exercises are aimed at restructuring or rebranding the party to ensure:

– sanity,

– purity,

– stability and

– inclusivity.

15. The congresses and convention bring about inclusivity and cohesion in the party. All the stakeholders and members would enjoy internal democracy within the party level in participating in the congress and convention.

16. Congresses and convention mark the beginning of a new era in the party, marked by high level of political participation among the citizens with clear-cut democratization of the nation’s political system at party level.

17. Congresses and convention open the doors for the entrance of new members to the party with the issuance of membership cards and other forms of identity within the party level.

18. In essence, congresses and convention usher in a brand new government of a political party and strengthens the party with a united structure.

19. The congresses and convention open the phase of high membership drive in the party for the preparation of election outing.

20. The measure of the strength of the party’s membership is the outcome of its electoral fortunes. The winning ways enjoyed by the party.

21. The party can only constitutionally transact democratic business after it meets the constitutional requirement of conducting congresses and convention in any given four(4) years interval transiting from subsisting to a new phase of congresses and convention.

22. Congress and convention are the outcome of a new transitional and structural phase of the party. They are part of the requirements for a party to be eligible to field candidates in the subsequent elections in the polity.

23. Congresses and convention signals no victor – no vanquished in the party while only the entire party structure wins in the matter concerning democratic business within the party.

24. The acceptable leaders of the party by law and constitution are those produced in a congresses and convention organised by the party. They are those saddled with the responsibility of transacting democratic business on behalf of the party.

25. So, any other group of former or old leaders in the party using the veil of the party to transact democratic business will severely face the weighty wrath of the law.

26. The LP is set to usher in congresses and the All Inclusive And Expansive National Convention 2025 in just few months ahead of now.

27. All the party’s stakeholders, intending stakeholders, membership and former leadership should square it up in the party’s National Congresses and Convention to elect credible leaders that will administer the affairs of the party in the next four years.

28. High level of political participation is expected from the Nigerian citizens for them to be part of this all-sensitive and all-important phase of the party.All hands on deck for a new LP!

29. Those who are not ok with the phase the LP is undergoing have their constitutional right of defection or staying put in the party where necessary. It is either you fall in line now or you fall out of line. There are no two ways about the situation as it is now in the party.

30. The LP is now undergoing democratic baptism with the ushering in of congress and convention in the party by the NEC and supported by the National Administrative Council, NAC of the NLC Political Commission

It is time to join the moving train!

Shalom

Labour party LP !
Forward Ever !
Backward Never !