Francis Ogbuagu 
…Says Crisis in Edo Labour Party has been resolved
The National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Bar Julius Abure has said that the party has not endorsed any candidate ahead of the Edo 2024 gubernatorial elections.
Abure also said the crisis rocking the Edo State Chapter of the party has been resolved and that the party’s door is open for everyone who has an interest in joining the party.
He made the statement in Benin City Edo State, after his two days thank you visit to Edo State.
“I want to thank you for the support, you gave to Labour Party candidates during the 2023 general elections. I want to say that our work was made easy by your support.
“I want to say that the press adequately reported us, in spite of the fact that we don’t have money to share, but out of your zeal to see a new Nigeria.
“I came to thank everybody in Edo State for their support during the election, I started my visit from my Ward,3, Esan North East, where I met with all the leaders of the party.
“I want to thank them, because, in my Ward, I won all the elections, both the Presidential and House of Assembly Elections, though it was marred with irregularities, I won all.
“I feel that I owe it as a duty to appreciate everybody. The Labour Party scored 79% in the Presidential election in Edo State.”
On the crisis rocking the party after the election, he said, “We have set up a committee to look at the problem of Labour Party in Edo State and resolved the problems and I have said that our doors are open to our members, and I want to make it categorically clear that I have not endorsed anybody for Edo 2024 governorship election.
“The Labour Party Primaries that will produce the candidate is going to be competitive, it is going to be transparent. Our problem with PDP and APC is that they lack internal party democracy, that will produce the candidate that has the pedigree, capacity and competency to anchor our affairs as a nation and that has landed us in the problem we are in today.
“Therefore as an emerging political party, we believe that we should change the political narrative. We can not be seen doing the same thing. Members and delegates of the Labour Party will decide who becomes the party candidate for Edo 2024 election.
“We called this meeting because, we perceived some disagreement between officials of the party during and after the general elections, and I want to categorically say that we have resolved the problems, we now have a united party that will work for the interest of the party for the coming elections”
He also said that the party is optimistic that the Presidential Election Tribunal will do justice to the case, having presented its facts before the court.
“Having marshalled out our defence, you can see that APC and INEC are struggling to present their defence and I am sure that at the end of the day, justice will be done,our stollen mandate will be reclaimed,” he said.
