Abure Protest Faction of Labor Party at Inec Headquarters, Party Leadership said they were ‘fraudsters’

Supporters who are in line with the faction led by Julius Abure from the Labor Party appeared at the Headquarters of the Independent National Election Commission (Inec) in Abuja on Wednesday morning, protested for the removal of their candidates from the official list of Inec for the upcoming FCT area council election and the selection of the National Council Election.

Songs of the slogan -Slogan such as “Inec must respect the rule of law” and “the Supreme Court of the Court supports Julius Abure,” demonstrators carry a plaque that reads “The Management Committee is not a political party,” “Stopping killing democracy in Nigeria,” and “Inec should not kill the biggest opposition party in Nigeria.” Security operations are present along the parade, ensuring orders when the crowd moves around the place of the commission.

The protest was framed in response to Inec’s rejection to issue a list of candidates submitted by the Abure faction, it was said to be contrary to the Supreme Court’s decision that supported his leadership claims.

The day before, the leadership under the national chairman while Senator Nenadi Usman issued a statement that was very awarding the party from the protest. Signed by Ken Eluma Asogwa, a media advisor to the temporary chairman, release described the organizer as “fraudster” and “political imitator,” warning that demonstrations did not have a mandate from the official party organs.

Party leadership urges public institutions and security to consider participants to act outside the party authority and call for their arrests and prosecution based on relevant laws.

The division within the labor party comes from a protracted leadership dispute. Julius Abure has served as national chairman since 2021, but the Supreme Court’s decision on April 4, 2025 stated that his term ended on June 8, 2023. Furthermore, the National Executive Committee of Governor Alex Otti installed Usman as a temporary national chairman and Darlington Nwokocha as a temporary national minister.

Kennedy Ahanotu, a youth leader in the Abure faction, rejected this appointment as “non -constitutional” and insisted on Abure’s legitimacy in accordance with the party’s constitution and the Election Law.

The protest was triggered by INEC’s decision to reject the list of candidates submitted by the Abure camp, a step of the Labor Party was officially praised as compliance with the law of election and court decision. The leadership led by Usman stated that Inec had rejected what he described as an invalid submission and stated the belief that the election body would eventually publish a legal list of legal leadership.