Claims that the Labour Party (LP) was working with President Bola Tinubu in the run-up to the 2027 elections have been refuted.
The retort comes after a video went viral in which human rights attorney Deji Adeyanju accused the party of collaborating with the president.
In a statement released on Friday, the LP’s national press secretary, Obiora Ifoh, denied the allegations and emphasized the party’s steadfast opposition position.
“As a matter of fact, the Labour Party is the most visible opposition party as of today, and our national chairman, Barrister Abure, is the leading voice in the opposition camp and has been most critical of the present government,” the statement read.
The LP highlighted its continued efforts to hold the government accountable post-2023 elections, stating, “After the 2023 general election, it continued to interrogate the system’s failure and has been very visible playing the role of the opposition, continuously critiquing the policies, proffering solutions, and advising the government.”
The party denied any allegations of cooperation with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and reaffirmed its dedication to credible government.
“It is on record that the Labour Party has on several occasions spiritedly debunked the allegations that it has an unholy understanding with the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, to collaborate ahead of the 2027 general election,” the statement added.
Highlighting its plans to reform Nigeria’s electoral system, Ifoh noted, “Recently, the party, under the able leadership of Mr. Julius Abure, came up with a series of programmes, including the creation of the electoral reform committee. With it, we hope to enthrone credible, fair, and transparent processes, leading to the selection of leadership in the country, with the Labour Party being a major victim in the 2023 general election.”
The party expressed strong disapproval of Adeyanju’s remarks, describing them as harmful and baseless. “All these efforts to reposition the party for someone to be demarketing such a party in such an unguarded and callous manner is most ridiculous and unfortunate. We are, therefore, challenging Deji Adeyanju and any other person to come up with facts and proofs that either the party leadership or Mr. Abure intends to work for President Bola Tinubu or his party, the APC, in 2027.”
The LP labeled the viral comments as defamatory, warning of possible legal action. “Adeyanju’s assertion, which is presently trending globally, has caused the Labour Party enormous harm, and we are demanding that he refrain from causing the party further harm.”
Ifoh continued, “As a political party, we view Deji Adeyanju’s now-viral comments as criminal defamation, a clearly motivated ploy to ridicule our hard-earned reputation. We are therefore calling on Mr. Adeyanju, who ought to know the grave consequences of a defamatory act, to without delay provide facts and evidence to prove that the Labour Party has been ‘bought’ over by President Tinubu. He also has a choice to withdraw his ill assertions and apologise to the leadership and millions of members of the Labour Party for the great harm he has caused the party.”
A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.
Nnamdi Okoli
