Ousted Labour Party Chairman, Abure, vows to Appeal Court ruling, slams “strangulation of democracy”

Former Labour Party National Chairman Julius Abure has pledged to appeal his removal by the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The court’s ruling cited an April 2025 Supreme Court decision that affirmed Senator Nenadi Usman as head of the party’s caretaker committee, a status later reflected in an updated INEC list of party chairmen.

Responding to the development, Obiora Ifoh, the national publicity secretary for the Abure faction, declared their intent to challenge the judgment at the appellate court.

He asserted that the faction remains undeterred in its preparations for the 2027 general elections.

In a strongly-worded statement, Ifoh called on Nigerians to resist what he termed “the strangulation and monetization of democracy by a few power-drunks.”

He warned that the nation risks heading toward a precipice if unchecked political ambitions prevail.

“Some persons who are applauding this impunity should retrace their steps and do some introspection,” Ifoh stated. “This was how injustice was applauded in the past by beneficiaries, only for complaints to arise when those enthroned leaders began to abuse power.”

Reaffirming faith in the appellate process, he urged party members to remain calm. “We will continue the struggle to take our party from the godfathers,” he said, criticizing the formation of the caretaker committee as a violation of party principles and due process.

“Labour Party is based on social democracy, where no one man appoints everybody from the National Working Committee down to the ward level. This impunity is of the highest order.”

Ifoh dismissed the celebrations of Senator Usman, Abia State Governor Alex Otti, and their allies, labeling their victory as “pyrrhic and short-lived.”

He concluded, “Their celebration will be short-lived. The doomsday is closer than they imagine, and it will be catastrophic for them.”

State chair­man of the African Action Con­gress (AAC), said that mandatory electronic result transmission during elections in Nigeria may face several challenges.

He said: Security risks are a major concern, as hackers could intercept votes, alter results, or disrupt transmission.

“The country’s cybersecurity infrastructures are still devel­oping, making it vulnerable to attacks.

Other challenges, according to him, “include: infrastructure issues: inconsistent power supply and poor network connections could disrupt transmission.

“Lack of transparency: Elec­tronic systems can be opaque, making it difficult to verify re­sults; technical glitches: System failures or errors could delay or invalidate results; capacity and training: election officials and staff may need training to handle electronic systems.

“These challenges highlight the need for robust security mea­sures, reliable infrastructure, and transparency to ensure elec­toral process integrity.”

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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