Appeal Court Affirms Nenadi Usman Leadership of LP

* Dismisses Julius Abure’s case 

Alex Enumah in Abuja 

The Abuja division of the Court of Appeal on Tuesday affirmed the Senator Nenadi Usman leadership of the Labour Party (LP).

A three-member panel of the appellate court recognized the Usman executive of the LP, shortly after dismissing the appeal filed by the former National Chairman, Julius Abure.

Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had reaffirmed the earlier judgment of the Supreme Court that sacked Abure as the national chairman of the party and directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Usman as the legitimate leader of the party, to the exclusion of all others.

Abure then approached the Court of Appeal, seeking an order to reverse the decision of the lower court.

The suit marked: CA/ABJ/CV/255/2026, has Senator Nenadi Esther Usman & 3 others as defendants.

However, the appellate court in the unanimous judgment delivered dismissed the appeal, noting that the judgment of the trial court was in order and found no grounds to upturn it.

The lead judgment was delivered by Justice Oyejoju Oyewumi, with Justices A. B. Mohammed and Eberechi Suzzette Nyesom-Wike in agreement.

According to the appellate court, the Supreme Court had, on April 4, 2025, conclusively settled the leadership dispute within the Labour Party when it nullified the convention that purportedly returned Abure as national chairman.

The appellate court stated that the court below had the powers under Section 251 of the Constitution to compel a statutory Federal Government agency to perform its functions, when it ordered INEC to recognise Usman as the National Chairman of the Labour Party.

The appellate court also agreed with the trial court that the constitution of the Caretaker Committee of the Labour Party, headed by Usman, was a doctrine of necessity needed to provide leadership in the party when there appeared to be a vacuum.

The justices strongly criticised Abure for abuse of court process and for engaging in forum shopping at a Nasarawa State High Court on a matter already decided by the Supreme Court, and for persisting in laying claim to the leadership of the party despite the clear and unambiguous pronouncement of the apex court.

The court further held that the appeal was devoid of merit and constituted an abuse of court process.

Consequently, the court, while dismissing the appeal by Abure, imposed a cost of N10 million against him for wasting judicial time on a matter that had already been conclusively determined.