Labour Party’s Struggles: How Peter Obi’s Influence Could Be Holding the Party Back

It was, in every aspect, a disappointing election for the Labour Party in the just-concluded Edo State governorship election.

What was described as a three-horse race between Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), and Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party, was, in fact, a heated political contest that largely ignored the presence of Peter Obi’s political ‘brainchild.’

“Brainchild,” not because Peter Obi, a fine politician whose ‘incorruptible’ nature has made him popular, was the founder of the 21-year-old party, but because the resurgence of the Labour Party was driven by Obi’s dramatic entrance ahead of the 2023 general election.

The Labour Party, like a balloon caught in a strong wind, suddenly swelled into a national movement. But was it truly a national party, or was it Obi’s defection from the PDP—a party many Nigerians view as being in the same league as the APC, a breeding ground for corruption—that gave the Labour Party its moment of national prominence?

In fact, the highlight of the 2023 election season was the organic rise of a movement named after Obi—the “Obidient Movement.”

If the memories of the 2023 elections have faded among many Nigerians, perhaps it is necessary to jog them by recalling how rallies where Peter Obi was scheduled to appear were packed to capacity. Old men and women, some too fragile to vote on election day, and children, still decades away from eligibility, filled stadiums to the brim. At the sight of Peter Obi, both those without Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and those with them but who would not vote erupted in joyous, star-struck fashion. During speeches, his babyish, song-like voice was frequently interrupted by chants, praise, and more praise.

The euphoria surrounding the 2023 election was quickly followed by an unexpected outcome, which raises questions about the genuine support Peter Obi enjoyed leading up to the February 25 presidential election.

The Labour Party would eventually finish third in an election whose results remain a subject of heated controversy.

But as we have come to see, it is a party built on the cult-like following of Obi, which has made it difficult for the party’s sustainability and, consequently, the success of its candidates in subsequent elections.

Labour Party today is essentially Peter Obi, and the fundamental flaw in this structure is that Nigerians, as the country’s political system has shown for decades, are often divided along ethnic lines, which are closely aligned to political parties.

Even Peter Obi’s charismatic appeal, which earned him national support, has not effectively transferred to the party itself. Hence, Nigerians, despite many identifying with Obi, appear not to have fully embraced Labour Party as their political party.

As a result, the dismal performance of the Labour Party in the Edo State election was not surprising but highlights a trend that has persisted since the 2023 polls.

In November 2023, Athan Achonu of the Labour Party failed to clinch the governorship position in Imo State, despite it being one of Obi’s strongholds. The election, much like the one in Edo, was described as a three-horse race. However, the result was disappointing—Achonu finished third with a total vote of 64,081, compared to Hope Uzodinma’s 540,308 votes.

Similarly, in the Bayelsa gubernatorial election during the same off-cycle period, Labour Party was nearly invisible, with its candidate, Udengs Eradiri, receiving a mere 905 votes. Eradiri alleged vote-buying, but his performance did little to suggest otherwise. The situation was no different in Kogi State.

In the Edo election held on Saturday, September 21, the votes Labour Party garnered were, to put it mildly, shameful.

Recall that Edo was one of the states swept up in the “Obidient” fever, where Peter Obi garnered 331,163 votes in the 2023 presidential election—higher than the combined votes of Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar.

Yet, in this same South-South state, Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party received only 22,763 votes, while the APC and PDP garnered 291,667 and 247,274 votes, respectively, in Saturday’s election.

“I, Prof. Faruq Adamu Kuta, I certify that I am the Returning officer for the Edo state governorship election held on September 21, 2024… That Okpebholo of the APC, having satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby declared the winner of the election and returned elected,” INEC Returning Office, Prof. Faruq Adamu Kuta, said on Sunday.

With such a poor showing, where the total votes for the Labour Party were less than the APC’s votes in Akoko-Edo LGA, it shows that the party has been plagued by a structural problem that makes it difficult for non-party members to identify with.

More notably, Labour Party candidates appear lackadaisical in truly campaigning for the offices they are vying for, preferring to bask in the appealing name of Peter Obi, which, as recent elections have sadly shown, lacks the ultimate power to command votes.

When political rivals accuse Labour Party candidates of being delusional, of lacking the insight to understand Nigeria’s political system, it is easily interpreted as the typical political insult that politicians are known to indulge in.

However, if Olumide Akpata could claim certainty of winning the Edo election based on two social media polls run by Tunde Ednut and Oseni Rufai, one could not be blamed for accusing them of not truly understanding what it takes to win an election in Nigeria.

Thus, what the Labour Party has witnessed since the 2023 election is a regression, as the party was essentially built around an individual whose popularity, as we now see, may be fading. Even if Peter Obi’s popularity remains as strong as it was during the presidential election, his influence appears to cast an invisible shadow over the Labour Party, overshadowing its candidates.

Hence, one could assume that while Nigerians know Peter Obi, many are unfamiliar with the Labour Party’s candidates. The turnout we witnessed at campaign rallies is not different from fans attending a Davido concert—showing up en masse to see a superstar perform. Peter Obi is a political showman, generating buzz but delivering little in terms of results for his party.

The internal party discord doesn’t help—in fact, it has contributed to this regression.

Kenneth Okonkwo, who served as Peter Obi’s campaign spokesperson, raised significant concerns in the letter where he severed ties with Obi, even suggesting that the former governor lacks what it takes to secure a mandate.

“I no longer have the confidence that PO has what it takes to build a party that can win against these kakistocrats and kleptocrats. Above all, he has proved that even if the people vote for him, he doesn’t have what it takes to secure the mandate. I don’t intend to embark on such a campaign as we did in 2023, projecting a person who cannot sustain the victory even if he wins,” Okonkwo wrote.

If Labour Party wishes to maintain any semblance of relevance to the extent that the 2027 general election can again be described as a horse race, the party must first build a structure not based on the identity of an individual but on a true ideology that Nigerians, regardless of their preferences, can easily identify with.

Peter Obi needs to realize that he is part of the party, not the party itself. He is not an independent candidate. He is a member of a political party that is in dire need of building a grassroots structure capable of standing a chance of winning elections.