The Julius Abure-led faction of the Labour Party has announced plans to challenge a Federal High Court judgment in the Federal Capital Territory that recognised the Nenadi Usman-led Caretaker Committee as the party’s leadership.
In a ruling delivered on Wednesday, Justice Peter Lifu relied on an April 4, 2025, Supreme Court decision to affirm Senator Nenadi Usman as the party’s legitimate leader.
Responding to the judgment, the Abure-led group, through a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, argued that the decision conflicted with the Supreme Court’s stance. The faction maintained that the apex court had clearly ruled that courts lack the authority to impose leadership on political parties, as such matters fall within internal party affairs.
While noting that it was yet to obtain the Certified True Copy of the judgment, the faction said preliminary details already justified an appeal. It also raised concerns about what it described as irregularities in the handling of the case, including the reassignment of the matter from Justice Omotosho to Justice Lifu and the court’s refusal to allow it respond to issues raised in a counter-affidavit before proceeding to judgment.
The faction further alleged that its opponents celebrated the anticipated ruling weeks in advance, suggesting prior knowledge of the outcome. It recalled that the Court of Appeal had earlier recognised Julius Abure’s National Working Committee as the authentic leadership, a decision Nenadi Usman had challenged at the Supreme Court on grounds that courts should not determine party leadership.
According to the statement, it was contradictory for the Federal High Court to now pronounce a caretaker chairman, which the faction said runs contrary to the Supreme Court’s position that leadership disputes are internal matters. It added that the apex court never declared the Abure-led executive’s tenure expired but merely declined jurisdiction.
The faction also insisted that there was no leadership vacuum, arguing that the executive’s tenure, originally set to end in June 2024, was renewed following a national convention held in March 2024. It questioned how the court concluded that a vacuum existed without assessing the legality of that convention, describing such reasoning as flawed.
