By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
The doubt over the authentic leadership of Labour Party (LP) may have been settled as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has published the names and particulars of governorship candidates produced by Barrister Julius Abure.
This is even as all the governorship aspirants produced by the faction led by one Lamidi Apapa were not considered at all by electoral umpire as the faction are not recognised by the Commission.
Prompt News reports that the list of cleared candidates published by INEC on Friday contained names of LP candidates who emerged from the governorship primary election conducted by Abure led National Executive Committee (NEC).
For example, whilst the Apapa-faction produced one Mr. Joseph Ikechukwu Ukaegbu in Imo state as the Labour Party flagbearer for the November 11 Governorship Election, INEC recognised the primary election conducted by Abure led NEC which produced Senator Athan Nneji Achonu as the authentic candidate of Labour Party.
For Kogi state, INEC published the name of Barrister Okeme Adejoh who emerged from the primary election supervised by Abure led executive as LP’s gubernatorial candidate while Bayelsa state was not any different as INEC listed the name of former Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), President Udengs Eradiri as the Labour Party flagbearer for forthcoming election.
With the publishing of the particulars of candidates of all the 18 political parties on Friday, INEC has taken a definite position on the leadership tussle in LP which has now left Apapa and his group with the short end of the stick in the fight for the soul of Labour Party.
Recall that Abure Apapa factions of the Labour Party have been at loggerheads on who is the recognised Chairman of the Labour Party just as the power tussle snowballed into holding factional primaries to produce candidates who will participate in the November 11 Governorship Elections holding in Kogi, Bayelsa and Imo states later in the year.
Interestingly, the list of candidates of political parties published by INEC on Friday has settled the dispute as only candidates who emerged from the governorship primary election conducted by Abure led NEC have their names and particulars published on the INEC websites and state offices.
