Ikechukwu Emetu, deputy governor of Abia, says the Labour Party (LP) will welcome President Bola Tinubu, Peter Obi, and other political actors who may decide to join the party ahead of the 2027 general election.
Emetu, who chairs the LP national steering committee on membership, revalidation, and e-registration, spoke on Monday during the presentation of a progress report and the formal handover to the Nenadi Usman-led national caretaker committee.
He was responding to questions on whether Obi, the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, would be allowed to return if he fails to secure the ticket of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), his new political platform.
Emetu said the LP operates an open and inclusive system that does not restrict membership.
The Labour Party is a party for all, irrespective of who they are. The party is a national party; it is not a cult group where people are restricted from coming in,” he said.
He added that even Tinubu would be admitted if he chooses to defect from the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Even Mr President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, can decide, on or before the 2027 elections, to join the Labour Party, and we will gladly accept him,” Emetu said.
This is a national party. It is not a cult group where people are restricted from joining. It is a party for everybody.”
He dismissed moves by Julius Abure, the ousted national chairman of the LP, who has vowed to appeal a court ruling recognising the Usman-led caretaker committee, as inconsequential.
“The only court Abure can take his appeal to now is the volleyball court. The Supreme Court judgment has also confirmed this,” he said.
“Abure is in the past now because we have moved on.”
In January, a federal high court in Abuja ruled that Abure’s tenure as national chairman of the party had elapsed and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise the caretaker committee led by Usman pending the conduct of a national convention.
The ruling followed months of internal wrangling and parallel leadership claims that intensified after the 2023 general election.
While the faction loyal to Alex Otti, governor of Abia, welcomed the judgment, it called for restraint and reconciliation to stabilise the party.
Abure, however, rejected the ruling and vowed to challenge it at the appellate court, cautioning INEC against aligning with the Otti-backed faction.
INEC subsequently recognised Usman as acting national chairman of the party, citing a subsisting court order directing it to acknowledge the caretaker committee.
Two weeks ago, Abure’s name was replaced with Usman’s on INEC’s official website alongside other national officers of the party.
