The chief spokesperson for the Obi-Datti campaign organization, Yinusa Tanko, asserts that the ongoing crisis within the Labour Party could have been averted had the leadership heeded the counsel of Peter Obi, the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 elections.
Tanko remarked that the recently concluded national convention of the party, which reinstated Julius Abure as the national chairman, was not fully inclusive.
“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,” Tanko said on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme on Monday.
“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.
“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.”
He mentioned that while Abure retains the right to contest the national chairmanship position again, it’s essential to ensure that the process is conducted in a manner that allows broader participation.
Tanko highlighted that Abure deviated from the initial agreement for an all-inclusive national convention, which was supposed to commence from the ward, local government, and state levels before reaching the national level.
He stated that the convention held in Nnewi, Anambra State, which saw Abure reinstated as the party leader, did not adhere to the agreed-upon process and hence lacked acceptability among all party members.
Responding to whether the party’s crisis could affect Obi in the next election, Tanko affirmed that Obi is a brand unto himself, and he, along with other supporters, will stand by him regardless of the party’s internal challenges.
At the Labour Party convention held on March 27 in Nnewi, Abure was re-elected as National Chairman for a second term through a unanimous affirmation of delegates, despite strong opposition from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) stated that none of its officials monitored the convention, while the party’s Board of Trustees insisted that Abure’s tenure had expired.
Before the contentious convention, the NLC had demanded Abure’s resignation as party chairman and urged the immediate establishment of a caretaker transition committee to organize a legitimate and inclusive national convention for the party.