Will Apex Court’s Judgement Resolve LP’s Leadership Crisis?

Chuks Okocha wonders if last Friday’s judgement by the Supreme Court can really resolve the real issues being misinterpreted by the two factions of the Labour Party laying claims to the national leadership of the party.

Like in the case of the People’s Democratic Party’s leadership struggle between the embattled National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu and Hon. Sunday Ude-Okoye, the Supreme Court last Friday left Nigerians confused in its judgement over the leadership crisis in Labour party.

In the PDP judgement, the apex court had ruled that the party should use its internal mechanism to resolve the leadership struggle between Anyanwu and Sunday Ude-Okoye. It ruled that the judgement “of the lower courts that heard the suit were not meritorious and subsequently dismissed the case”.

This has left members of the PDP more confused as Anyanwu and Ude-Okoye are still not clear on the actual position of the Supreme Court on who the PDP’s authentic national secretary is. Both Anyanwu and Sunday Ude-Okoye are still laying claim to the exalted position of National Secretary.

The same scenario played itself out last Friday when the Supreme Court urged the Labour party to use its internal mechanism to resolve the leadership crisis in the party.

The Supreme Court had reversed the judgement of the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which recognisedAbure as the National Chairman of the LP.

The apex court predicated its action on the grounds that the Court of Appeal lacked the jurisdiction to have pronounced Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party after holding that the substance of the case borders on the party’s leadership.

A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, had on January 17, 2025 recognisedAbure as the National Chairman of the LP.

Justice HammaBarka, who delivered the lead judgement had said that their decision was based on their earlier judgement of November 13, 2024, which recognisedAbure as national chairman, adding that the judgement subsists and has not been set aside by any court.

Dissatisfied, Nenadi Usman, who heads a committee set up by the LP to run the affairs of the party in the interim, alongside the caretaker committee, had approached the apex court to challenge the decision of the appellate court recognisingAbure as national chairman of the party.

Delivering judgement in the appeal marked: SC/CV/56/2025, Justice John InyangOkoro, who prepared the lead judgement as delivered by Mohammed Baba Idris, held that the issue bordering on leadership of a political party remains an internal affair of that party, which no court has jurisdiction to entertain.

According to the judgement, the appellate court found that the main relief in the suit filed by the LP before the Federal High Court, Abuja, was predicated on the leadership of the party and therefore not justiciable.

Justice Idris explained that having found that the issue of leadership was not justiciable, the court below ought not to have gone further to pronounce Abure as the National Chairman of the party.

“In summary, both the trial court and the lower court have no jurisdiction to have entertained the suit by the first respondent (LP).

“Flowing from above, the decisions of the trial court and the court below, recognising  JuliusAbure as the National Chairman of the first respondent are hereby set aside,” the apex court held.

Besides, the apex court urged political parties and their members to always endeavour to allow their constitutions and rules guide them in choosing their leaders as well as their candidates.

The court noted that by doing so the incessant wrangling and recourse to court will be reduced, adding that officers of the parties, whose tenure of office has expired should not hesitate to vacate office.

After agreeing with the appellants that the lower court erred in law by acknowledging Abure’s leadership, the apex court subsequently allowed the appeal and quashed the Court of Appeal judgement.

The apex court also went ahead to dismiss the cross-appeal filed by the Abure faction of the LP for being incompetent and lacking in merit.

Recall that Justice Barka had while delivering judgement in two separate appeals filed by Senator Usman and the caretaker committee and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), held that it did not delve into the issue of the leadership of the Labour Party, because such issues are not justiciable.

It was the position of the appellate court that anything done outside jurisdiction amounts to a nullity, “Hence the judgement of the Federal High Court delivered on October 8, 2024 by Justice EmekaNwite is of no effect because it was delivered without jurisdiction.

“We cannot say this appeal fails or succeed because the lower court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the suit in the first place,” Barka held.

While striking out the suit for want of jurisdiction, Justice Barka held that the appellate court relied on its previous judgement of November 13, 2024 to hold that “Abure remains National Chairman of the Labour Party”.

Flowing from the judgement, both Senator Nenadi Usman and Mr Julius Abure, are laying claims to victory as national chairman of the Labour Party.

In her reaction to the judgement, Nenadi Usman in a statement said: ”The recent ruling by the Supreme Court, which allowed the appeal filed by Senator Nenadi Usman—declaring it meritorious—while dismissing the cross-appeal filed by the Abure faction of the Labour Party as unmeritorious, is a victory for the rule of law and a significant milestone for our democracy.

”It is important to emphasise that this is not a time for triumphalism—there is no victor and no vanquished. What matters most is our shared commitment to the ideals and aspirations of the Labour Party and the Nigerian people. We must now come together, united in purpose and vision, to move the party forward.

”The Labour Party remains one indivisible family, steadfast in its mission to create a New Nigeria founded on justice, equity, and people-centred governance.

”We call on all party members, supporters, and stakeholders to remain calm, focused, and committed to the democratic ideals that bind us. A New Nigeria is Possible!”

Still in the confused state on the actual position of the Supreme Court judgement, the National Publicity Secretary of the Labour party, ObioraIfoh, in a statement said, “The Supreme Court today, April 4, 2025 gave a judgement in the cases brought against the Labour Party. In its judgement, the court said the matter is purely an internal affairs of the political party of which courts have no business to dabble into them.

”The Supreme Court insists that the lower courts should have declined jurisdiction and shouldn’t have made pronouncement on the leadership of a political party. It therefore struck out Senator Nenadi Usman’s appeal at the Appeal Court and the Labour Party suit at the trial court.

”The Supreme Court judgement didn’t sack Labour Party National Chairman, Julius Abure rather it rightly upheld the preceding and accumulated High Courts and Appeal Court judgments upholding the immutability of responsibility of Labour Party structures to choose its leaders.

”The judgement did not also set aside the Appeal Court judgement in Labour Party vs Ebiseni and 2 others (CA/ABJ/CV/1172/2024) delivered on the 13 November 2024 which affirmed Julius Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party. The judgement is still valid and subsisting and has not been appealed.

”The implication is very clear. Julius Abure remains Labour Party’s national chairman”.

According to the spokesman of the Abure-led Labour party, ”The question is: who are the leaders of the party? The party constitution is clear as who are the leaders of the party. The leadership of the party has been the National Working Committee led by  JuliusAbure.

”The party constitution is also clear on who has the power to call for the national convention or any national meeting.

”Article 14 of 2024 constitution as amended gives powers to the National Secretary of the party “to issue notices of meetings of the national convention, national executive council, the national working committee in consultation with and approval of the National Chairman.”

”Accordingly, the National convention of the party was called by the leadership of the party on the 27 of March 2024 where the leaders of the party emerged. The report of the National Convention is already with INEC and that leadership is recognised by INEC.

”The gathering of people in Umuahia is clearly not in line with the constitution and therefore the celebration by some persons that the leadership of Julius Abure has been sacked were only trying to be mischievous and misleading and that the Supreme Court didn’t say so,” Ifoh said.

He explained that the leadership of the party is therefore satisfied with the judgement of the apex court which goes to reaffirm Abure as the national chairman of the Labour Party and the current National Working Committee as validly elected having been duly nominated, endorsed, and ratified through the internal mechanism of the Labour Party statutory organs in line with the party’s constitution.

”We are therefore calling on all true members of the Labour Party to abide by the judgement of the apex court, and to always resort to internal party mechanism in resolving party affairs and not to always rush to the court. It is only the political parties that have the powers to choose its leaders not the courts. Everybody must learn to respect the decisions of the party and its constitution.

”The position of the Supreme Court is that the structures of the party is capable of handling any matters as it concerns its affairs and as it is today, the Labour Party National Chairman is and remains Barrister Julius Abure,” Ifoh stressed.

Also commenting on the apex court judgement, LP caucus in the House of Representatives welcomed the judgement which removed Abure as the National Chairman of the party.

The caucus noted that Abure’s exit would bring stability and reinvention to the party.

According to the caucus, the judgement was a timely counsel to leaders who play god in the affairs of men, particularly in a democracy.

In a statement issued shortly after the Supreme Court pronouncement, the Leader of the Caucus, Hon AfamOgene, described the development as a “veritable tonic for the revitalisation of the party” that has been engulfed by leadership tussle in recent times.

He commended the apex court of the judgement, stressing that LP can now experience a new lease of life.

The Anambra lawmaker added that with the judgement, “the party will hasten to implement necessary mechanisms to restore internal peace and get the party back on track, to reassure its teeming members of the party’s viability for future elections and its commitment to leadership that prioritises the interests and welfare of the people.”

Still claiming victory for Abure, the LP National Legal Adviser, KehindeEdun, said the judgment was deliberately twisted to suit the narrative of the party’s detractors.

He explained that what the court reeled out was that in political party administration, an official elected for a term in office could either choose to bow out or seek re-election if that term expires.

According to Edun: “It never mentioned that Abure’s tenure has expired. It only talked about the constitution of a political party, prescribing the tenure of office of an elected officer. That’s in the context of what is happening in Labour Party today. Yes, the tenure ended in 2019, extended for one year in 2023, and lapsed in 2024.

“But before that time, a new National Convention held and a new National Executive Committee of council was elected. Some old officers were re-elected while some new ones came in. So, it is not true that the court said the tenure of Abure has expired.

“Look at that document if you have it. It only gave general advice to all political parties that officers are elected for a term in office. Once that term expires, the person either bows out or seeks re-election. The Supreme Court, by their statement today, said everybody should respect party supremacy and whatever decision it takes.

“The Supreme Court also said today that the Constitution should be the document that should guide any political party in its operations and no caretaker committee was mentioned in the Constitution. How will they come in? There is no way for them. So, the issue of caretaker committee is nowhere. And that is the truth,” he noted.