The leadership of the Labour Party (LP) claims that Nkiruka Onyejeocha, the minister of state for Labuor and Employment, and the Lamidi Apapa faction are conspiring to sow discord within the party.
The Labour Party made this accusation after two lawyers representing the Independent National Electoral Commission had appeared in the Lagos appellate court last week bearing a letter of authorization to speak on behalf of INEC in the case between Amobi Ogah of LP and Nkiruka Onyejeocha of the APC.
The leadership of the Labour Party (LP) claims that Nkiruka Onyejeocha, the minister of state for Labor and Employment, and the Lamidi Apapa faction are conspiring to sow discord within the party.
The Labour Party made this accusation after two lawyers representing the Independent National Electoral Commission had appeared in the Lagos appellate court last week bearing a letter of authorization to speak on behalf of INEC in the case between Amobi Ogah of LP and Nkiruka Onyejeocha of the APC.
Recall that Ogah and Onyejeocha contested for the Isiukwuato Umunneochi Federal Constituency election earlier this year and INEC declared Oga the winner of the election with 11,769 votes as against Umunneochi’s 8,752 votes.
However, a National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal located in Umuahia, the capital of Abia State, ruled that the LP candidate’s election was invalid.
In ruling on the Umuahia petition (file number EPT/AB/HR/8/2023), a three-member tribunal panel found that Ogah had broken the terms of the Election Act.
Ogah maintained that Onyejeocha’s appointment as a Federal Republic of Nigeria minister demonstrated the abandonment of her petition.
In its ruling, the tribunal, however, rejected the legislator’s argument.
The appearance of two different lawyers claiming to have the authority to represent INEC in the appeal hearing in Lagos forced the hearing to be postponed.
In reaction to the incident, the LP’s National Youth Leader, Kennedy Ahanotu, told reporters on Wednesday at the party secretariat in Abuja that they had information indicating the drama was being planned by a faction of the LP and the minister.
Ahanotu, accompanied at the conference by National Legal Adviser Kehinde Edun and National Publicity Secretary Obiora Ifoh, further stated that they were certain she was working with some of the party’s expelled members.
“The leadership of the Labour Party wishes to inform Nigerians on yet an unholy alliance between the Minister of State for Labour, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, and some expelled members of our party led by Chief Lamidi Apapa, whose purpose is to ensure that crisis is sustained perpetually in our party”, he said.
“One may begin to wonder what connects the minister and the Labour Party that she will go to the length of instigating and funding crisis within the party. We are, however, aware that the former lawmaker is fighting a personal and proxy war against the party.
“Onyejeocha has been in the national assembly since 2007 until the February 25 general election when she was defeated by Amobi Ogah by a very wide margin. Her loss to Amobi Ogah was a pill too hard to swallow; hence, she has vowed to use all her connections to ensure that the election declared by INEC is upturned in her favour.”
Also, Ahanotu explained the confusion that led to the appearance of two lawyers at the appellate court last week, stating that they believed there was foul play.
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