LABOUR PARTY OFFICES INVASION: NLC’S ACTION IRRESPONSIBLE – LP

The Labour Party has expressed concerns over an alleged planned invasion of its national secretariat by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), in collaboration with the Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee and the National Transition Committee. This move, reportedly funded by the Abia State government and a prominent party leader, is set to begin on April 7, 2025.

In a statement, Alhaji Umar Farouk Ibrahim, National Secretary of the Labour Party, described the action as “irresponsible and an evidence of desperation on the NLC.” Ibrahim emphasized that the NLC’s laws prohibit partisan politics, yet they have consistently mobilized miscreants to desecrate the party’s national headquarters and vandalize its properties.

The Labour Party cited a recent Supreme Court judgment, delivered on April 5, 2025, which mandates political parties to resolve internal crises using their mechanisms. The judgment also underscores that leadership issues are internal affairs of the parties. Ibrahim noted that there is no provision in the judgment allowing the NLC or any other body to take over the party’s leadership.

“We view this action as capable of breaching the peace of the Federal Capital Territory,” Ibrahim said. “Any attempt to forcefully usurp the present leadership will be resisted.” The party’s national chairman, Barrister Julius Abure, was validly elected at a convention held in March 2024 and remains in office.

Ibrahim called on security agencies, including the Police and the DSS, to prevent any activities that could breach the peace in the FCT and to apprehend those behind the planned invasion. “We are by this statement calling on the attention of the security agencies… to ensure that any activity that is capable of breaching the peace of the FCT must be nipped in the bud,” he stated. Ibrahim reiterated that the masterminds of this plot, regardless of their stature, must face the full wrath of the law.