The Labour Party (LP) has declared that Julius Abure remains its National Chairman, in defiance of a Supreme Court ruling that effectively nullified his leadership.
On Friday, a five-member panel of the apex court set aside the ruling of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which had previously affirmed Abure as the party’s national chairman. The justices held that the case was an internal party matter and therefore outside the jurisdiction of the courts.
The ruling, which favoured an appeal filed by Senator Esther Usman and another party stakeholder, also noted that Abure’s tenure had already expired—raising further questions about the legitimacy of his continued stay in office.
However, the Labour Party has pushed back. Its National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, insisted that the ruling only reinforces the principle that internal party leadership disputes cannot be settled by the courts.
“The Supreme Court struck out both suits and reaffirmed that only political parties can determine their leaders,” Ifoh stated. “Abure is still the National Chairman of the Labour Party.”
