Abia Governor Alex Otti Calls for Arrest of Labour Party’s Julius Abure

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has called on Kayode Egbetokun, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), to arrest Julius Abure, the factional chairman of the Labour Party (LP), over allegations of impersonation. The call follows a bold move by Abure’s faction, which recently suspended Governor Otti along with other high-profile members of the party, sparking a fiery exchange between the two factions.

On Wednesday, the Abure-led faction of the LP announced the indefinite suspension of Otti, Senator Ireti Kingibe, Darlington Nwokocha, Victor Afam Ogene, Amobi Ogah, and Seyi Sowunmi. In a swift rebuttal, Otti, through a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ferdinand Ekeoma, dismissed the suspension as “a joke taken too far” and an “affront on democracy.”

Otti vehemently rejected Abure’s authority, accusing him of impersonation and attempting to exploit the party’s name for personal gain. The Governor highlighted a recent ruling by Nigeria’s Supreme Court that had removed Abure from his position as National Chairman of the Labour Party, declaring him unfit to represent the party in any official capacity. According to Otti, the court’s judgment had paved the way for the establishment of a new National Caretaker Committee led by Senator Nenadi Usman, effectively stripping Abure of his power.

“For the records, the highest court in the land, the Supreme Court of Nigeria, has rightly and unambiguously stated that Julius Abure is no longer the National Chairman of Labour Party,” Otti’s statement reads. “This judgment, in line with the Labour Party Constitution, led to the formation of the Senator Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee, which stripped Abure of all authority.”

Otti further condemned Abure’s actions, accusing him of rushing to the media with the suspension announcement just hours after being summoned by the Usman-led committee to answer allegations of misconduct, including financial mismanagement and anti-party activities.

The Governor’s statement urged Nigerians to dismiss Abure’s claims, branding him and his supporters as “clowns” engaged in a futile search for a title they didn’t deserve. He called for swift police action, urging the IGP to arrest Abure for impersonation, while also asking the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to uphold the Supreme Court ruling to protect Nigeria’s democracy.

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The tension within the Labour Party has been building for months. The internal rift between Abure and the Usman-led caretaker committee has deepened since the Supreme Court ruling last month, which determined that the Court of Appeal had no jurisdiction to declare Abure as chairman. Both factions have since claimed victory, and now, Lamidi Apapa has also thrown his hat into the ring, asserting his own claim to the chairmanship.

Meanwhile, the Abure faction remains determined to pursue its course. On May 2, the faction inaugurated a five-member disciplinary committee headed by Ayo Olorunfemi to investigate members suspected of anti-party activities.