Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), did his best to resolve the crisis in the party, but his suggestions for lasting peace was ignored by the National Chairman, Julius Abure.

This much was revealed by Yinusa Tanko, Chief Spokesman for the Obi-Datti Campaign Organisation, who made the revelation, said that the current crisis rocking the party, could have been prevented if the leadership had taken the advice of the former Governor of Anambra State.

A guest on The Morning Brief, a breakfast programme on Channels television, on Monday, the former campaign spokesman, said: “His Excellency, Peter Obi, has made a concerted effort in trying to intervene at any point we have this particular issue and trying to improve.

“When the issue of the national convention came up, he (Obi) suggested to the national chairman that because we are bigger now, we need to have a wider consultation: meet with responsible and interested people such as the TUC and NLC, stakeholders, the Obidient group – young generation people who are interested in seeing Nigeria work – meet with leaders who have different ideas that can midwife us into a greater height.

Advertisement

“All of these were the suggestions that he (Obi) made, and not only did he make those suggestions, he practicalised them because he met with the members of the National Assembly. He (Obi) met with the leadership of the party recently in Asaba trying to give them ideas on how he thinks certain things could be done and you could improve our situation but of course, you know how politics is, sometimes, people may be trying to encourage people, but they do something different.

“You can only take a horse to the river, but you cannot force it to drink water. So that’s exactly what Peter Obi has done. He has done so greatly to see if we can find a solution to some of the problems we find ourselves.”

Tanko, who argued that Abure had the right to contest the national chairmanship position again, it was only proper that the right things are done by opening the door for more people to be part of the process, noted however that the party boss went outside an initial agreement to have an all-inclusive national convention which ought to start from the ward, local government and state levels before the national level.

He said that the convention held in Nnewi Anambra State that returned Abure as the party’s leader did not conform with that agreement and therefore was not acceptable to everyone within the party.

Asked if the crisis in the party could be a problem for Obi in the next election, Tanko said Obi is a brand of his own and that he and other people would always move with him wherever he went to.

Advertisement

At the convention of the Labour Party held on March 27 in Nnewi, Abure was re-elected as the National Chairman for a second term by a unanimous affirmation of delegates despite strong opposition by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had also said none of its officials monitored the convention while the party’s Board of Trustees insisted that Abure’s tenure had expired.

Before the controversial convention, the NLC called for Abure’s resignation as party chairman and the immediate constitution of a caretaker transition committee to organise a legitimate and all-inclusive national convention for the party.

Advertisement

“There can never be peace in APC, judging by the way they run the party. The foundation is faulty. There can never be peace until the day the party will explode. The way they are running the party is wrong. There will not be peace in a party with a chairman nobody voted for.”

These were the words of Yekini Nabena, Deputy National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as he weighed in on the situation at the ruling party since the coming of Abdullahi Gaduje, former Governor of Kano State as the National Chairman.

Nabena, who argued in a statement that he personally signed that peace would continue to elude the ruling party as due to Ganduje’s clueless leadership, warned that its implosion was inevitable unless the situation was remedied.

His words: “He didn’t buy any nomination form to contest for the position but was appointed. And because he is appointed by Mr President, he acts as if every other person does not matter.

Advertisement

“It is even worse when the chairman sees the position as compensation for not being the Vice President. It becomes more painful when he, like his predecessors, enters Aso Villa and imposes decisions on members as what the President said just because others don’t have access to the Villa. So, they adopt name-dropping.

“The party exploding is just a matter of time because when was the last time they called for NEC meeting based on constitutional provision? Most of the members of the NWC are just appointed and they don’t know what the party stands for. We lost Bayelsa because the party chairman does not even know what it takes to win an election having lost his election in Kano.

“We have seen the crisis in Edo state that led to re-conducting the primary before the candidate could emerge. Ondo state is building up and nobody knows what will be the outcome. The party cannot do the right thing because nobody is checkmating anybody.”

Advertisement

Monday Okpebholo, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the September 21,  Edo State governorship election, has congratulated Uba Sani, Governor of Kaduna State, and the people of his state, on the successful rescue of the abducted Kuriga school children.

Okpebholo, the Senator representing Edo Central Senatorial District, who is popularly known as Akpakomiza, also praised the gallantry of the security agencies, particularly the Nigerian Army, involved in the rescue, as well as the National Security Adviser (NSA) to the President, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.

The Edo APC governorship  hopeful, stressed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu deserved to be appreciated for the priority that his administration has accorded security of the lives of Nigerians in the efforts being made to arrest criminalities in the country.

He believed that with the support of Nigerians and prayers, the current efforts by the APC administration would eventually rid the country of insecurity and usher in national prosperity in no distant time.

Advertisement

On the forthcoming governorship election in Edo state, Okpebholo promised to make security as one of the major focal points in his campaign, as a precursor to his eventual victory in the forthcoming polls.