In Kogi State, tribal resentment is ripping the Labour Party apart. In this article, PulseNets examines the Party’s problem and the chances of its Presidential Candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, winning the State in the 2023 presidential election.
The Labour Party, one of the opposition groups to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi State, has slowly gained popularity. However, it is currently entangled in a crisis that is affecting tribal lines.
Several divisions have arisen inside the party, which may have an impact on the party’s success in the 2023 elections, both at the federal and state levels.
According to PulseNets, the conflict over who controls the party in Kogi State has taken a new turn as two main tribes feel duped when it comes to the day-to-day management of the party’s political operations in the state.
People in Kogi State’s central region claim that party members from the state’s eastern region have hijacked the Labour Party.
Party. Some disgruntled Labour Party members in the Western Senatorial Districts agree with this.
A party insider who did not want his name used branded the current Labour Party leadership, led by Hon. Suleiman Abdul Ahmed, as the largest swindle of the century.
The source said, “The present leadership of Labour Party in Kogi State are jokers. They have already tribalized the Labour Party in Kogi. You can say anything because you don’t belong to their faction or tribe.
“I am not seeing our party making success with this development. I overheard the Chairman speaking at a press conference that the party is not divided. These are lies. He is running away from the truth. The Labour Party in Kogi State is now an ethnic agenda.
“Just look at the population of party officials that attended our presidential candidate rally on Tuesday held at the Confluence Stadium Lokoja. You would agree with me that only a few party officials loyal to the embattled Chairman were present. The National Secretariat should call the present leadership in Kogi to order before our party fails outrightly in the 2023 general election.”
No Factions in Kogi Labour Party- Chairman
However, the party’s Kogi State Chairman, Hon. Suleiman Abdul Ahmed, has denied media claims that the party is now divided along ethnic lines and broken into factions.
Speaking to PulseNets, Ahmed accused the ruling party of utilising certain disgruntled members of the party to sow discord.
According to the Labour Party Chairman, instead of focusing on policies that will attract development, the All Progressives Congress-led government in Kogi State is busy clamping down on other political parties, generating false panic in the state.
“There is no division in the Labour Party. Those saying all these are doing that for their own selfish interests. The Labour Party belongs to all Nigerians and not for a particular tribe in the State. Mischief makers are scared of the rising political profile of the Labour Party in Kogi State, so they are eager to see how they can divide the party. We also know that there are people who are paid by the incumbent.
“People who have ruled this State and ruined it, people who for so many years have not been paying salaries. Even when they try to pay, they will pay it in percentage. People who have also made up their minds that the State should go into retrogression, instead of progress. They already know that the people will reject them at the poll, all that is paramount to them is to cause disunity in the party,” he added.
The PCC and the State Executive will be called to Abuja.
According to Labour Party sources, the Presidential Campaign Councils in Kogi State, as well as the State Executive, would be called to Abuja to explain for how monies were used on Mr. Peter Obi’s campaign in Kogi State.
Obi was not pleased with what he witnessed during his visit to Kogi State on Tuesday, according to a source. The source accused the party executive of stealing cash intended for the success of the Labour Party’s presidential campaign.
The source said, “Hell will soon let loose in the Labour Party in Kogi State. I can confirm to you that the PCC of the Labour Party in Kogi, alongside the State Executive will be invited to Abuja to tell the world how they spent money used for our campaign in Kogi State.
“Just look at the low turnout yesterday. It was due to their poor preparation and lack of mobilisation across the 21 Local Government Areas of Kogi State.
“These People collected millions of naira from the National Secretariat but had nothing to show for it. I feel they are working for the APC and the PDP in Kogi State to win the election instead of our Party. We can’t continue like this. The Party is really divided, and it is time for the national Secretariat to intervene quickly before the Labour Party loses Kogi State in 2023.”
