DEMOLA ABIMBOYE argues for the resolution of the Labour Party crisis
Millions of supporters of the Labour Party (LP) now wait with bated breath for the commencement of hearing in the appeal filed by Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, on behalf of his client, Julius Abure, National Chairman of LP against the judgment of the Appeal Court of April 21, 2026 which said Senator Nenadi Usman should occupy the position.
Abure’s decision came about a month after he had rejected the Court of Appeal’s judgment. He had earlier described the judgment as unacceptable and vowed to challenge it at the apex court. “Nigerians will recall that when the Court of Appeal delivered judgment on April 21 on the Labour Party crisis, our leadership stated clearly that the party would head to the Supreme Court,” he said recently.
This step has once again brought to the fore the plight of the common man who saw in LP when it was formed as the last hope of the downtrodden. The LP was initially formed in 2002 as the Party for Social Democracy (PSD) by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). It was renamed the Labour Party in 2003. The change was solidified at its inaugural convention in 2004.
Over the years, LP has registered itself as a credible opposition party. Its candidate, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, won the gubernatorial elections in Ondo State in 2007 and served for two consecutive terms. Alex Otti won the 2023 governorship election in Abia State, becoming the only LP governor currently in office.
