Politics

Why Labour Party won’t punish Obi – Abure-led faction

The Labour Party, led by Julius Abure, has explained why it decided not to punish Peter Obi, their former presidential candidate, for allegedly betraying the party.

According to Obiora Ifoh, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obi was misled into supporting an “illegal” caretaker committee, adding that imposing sanctions on the latter wouldn’t resolve the issue.

This decision comes after the party accused Obi and Governor Alex Otti of Abia State of betrayal last week.

It seems the party is taking a gentle approach, hoping Obi will realize his mistakes and return to the fold.

Edun, a party representative, disclosed this in an interview interview with PUNCH.

“Obi is being misled. It is human to err, and we give respect to him as the leader. I understand there is so much pressure from everywhere, and we recognize that at the end of the day, the truth shall prevail.

“We might have a temporary situation where someone is confused as to the path to take. We won’t crucify him for that. So we are confident that it is only a matter of time; our leaders shall realize the truth and their mistakes. So it is clear.”

However, Obi’s media aide, Umar Ibrahim, disagrees, stating that Obi isn’t being misled and is focused on building a united party.

He emphasised the importance of following the party’s constitution and ignoring name-calling.

He said, “His Excellency Peter Obi is not interested in unending issues. He is interested in building a united party. So as long as they have respect for him, it’s good that they follow some of the laid-down rules and regulations of the party that can help us chart a way forward.

“That is exactly what we need to do. We should be able to ignore name-calling and all, but follow the provisions of the constitution of the party. As Obi usually says, if you want to be addressed as Excellency, you need to come through an excellent way.”

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