Labour Party Leadership Defends Split With Obi, Dismisses Claims of Regret Over 2023 Ticket

The leadership of the Labour Party (LP) aligned with Julius Abure has pushed back against claims that it regretted fielding Peter Obi as its presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, insisting instead that the former Anambra State governor parted ways with the party over what it describes as undemocratic conduct and irreconcilable differences over leadership and party ideology.

Speaking in an interview, the spokesperson for the Abure-led faction, Obiora Ifoh, said the party’s decision to present Obi in 2023 was based on the belief that he shared the LP’s core principles of social democracy, justice and equal opportunity.

According to him, that belief later proved misplaced.

“I am not sure I ever said we regretted fielding Obi in 2023, because at that time, we assumed he was the best candidate because he passed some of our qualification standards,” Ifoh said. “Everything we campaigned for was according to that vision.”

Ifoh argued that tensions escalated after the election when Obi allegedly failed to unite party stakeholders and instead sought to remove the existing leadership outside constitutional provisions.

He said the party expected Obi to lead a post-election reconciliation process aimed at consolidating the over six million votes recorded at the polls.

“We expected that after the election and the court cases, as a leader that he was, Obi ought to begin to work towards improving on the six million votes that we got,” he said, adding that party leaders stood firmly with Obi through legal battles and political pressure.

According to the LP spokesperson, the relationship deteriorated when Obi allegedly demanded the resignation of the party’s executives and later mobilised allies within the National Assembly and in Abia State to forcefully unseat the leadership.

“The party’s constitution stated how somebody should be removed from office, but he didn’t have the patience to wait until our tenure elapsed,” Ifoh said. “So, are those not enough reasons to tag him undemocratic?”

Responding to claims that the fallout was linked to Obi’s refusal to fund the party, Ifoh dismissed the allegation, stating that no financial demands were ever made on the former candidate. He maintained that Obi neither funded the party nor donated campaign materials.

“When the election was going on, he gave nothing. I’m sure you remember that mantra: no shishi, Obi no dey give shishi,” he said.

Ifoh explained that the party relied largely on proceeds from nomination forms to run its activities, fund campaigns and prosecute legal cases, noting that some of the court matters were handled free of charge due to the party’s limited resources.

The spokesperson also accused Obi’s supporters of instigating internal crises and pursuing multiple court actions against the party’s leadership.

He said more than 30 suits had been filed by Obi’s allies, including cases arising from the formation of a caretaker committee in Umuahia in September 2024.

“They went to Umuahia and factionalised the party. They created a caretaker committee and said they were now the authentic leadership of the party,” Ifoh said, describing the move as ironic given that the same actors had earlier endorsed Abure’s leadership at a convention.

Ifoh further alleged that the disputes had spilled over into electoral administration, accusing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of withholding the names of LP candidates for the Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections under the guise of court orders.

“As I speak to you, INEC has refused to upload our candidates,” he said.

On Obi’s recent defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the LP spokesperson suggested that the former presidential candidate had a history of frequent party switches and was more committed to individuals than institutions.

“He felt the leadership of the Labour Party were men of little names; he wanted ex-this, ex-that,” Ifoh said, adding that the party rejected what it described as recycled political figures.

Addressing the debate over whether the LP’s 2023 performance was driven by Obi’s popularity or party strength, Ifoh said the party existed and had recorded electoral successes before Obi joined. While acknowledging that Obi boosted the party’s visibility, he argued that handing over party structures to him later proved costly.

“No doubt, Obi’s involvement or participation actually increased the fortunes of the party,” he said. “But it is not about Obi himself.”

Ifoh also downplayed the political impact of the Obidient movement, describing it as a support base loyal to Obi rather than to the Labour Party. He claimed many of its members were not registered party members and contributed to internal instability.

“They were only loyal to Peter Obi and not to the party,” he said.

Despite the acrimony, the LP leadership said it had moved on from the crisis and wished Obi well in his new political platform.

“If Obi and his Obidients can move on, we wish them well,” Ifoh said. “I think it is better for us to have a peaceful home than to have a home that is crisis-ridden.”