The Julius Abure led National Working Committee has firmly pushed back against reconciliation overtures from Abia State Governor Alex Otti, deepening the internal rift within the party despite recent court developments.

Governor Otti, speaking earlier in Abuja, had said the party’s new leadership was open to healing old wounds and restoring unity following what he described as a legal victory. He publicly called on Abure and his allies to lay down their differences and return to the party fold, saying reconciliation would be welcomed as long as party rules were respected.

However, that appeal was swiftly rejected by the Abure camp. In an interview with Punch, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, dismissed the governor’s comments as lacking sincerity and coming at the wrong time. According to him, the call for peace was not driven by genuine concern for party unity but by political calculation.

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Ifoh accused Otti of being at the centre of the leadership crisis that has fractured the party, arguing that it was contradictory for the governor to now position himself as a peacemaker. He maintained that the dispute over the party’s leadership remains unresolved and is still firmly in the courts.

Describing the recent judgment as limited in scope, Ifoh stressed that it was delivered by a court of first instance and does not mark the end of the legal process. He questioned why Otti was rushing to push a reconciliation agenda while an appeal is pending, suggesting that patience would have been a more reasonable approach if the intention was truly to stabilise the party.

The publicity secretary also played down the significance of the court ruling, characterising the celebrations by the opposing camp as premature. He said the outcome amounted to a temporary win that would not stand the test of time, insisting that the “true leadership” of the party would eventually emerge once all legal options are exhausted.

With both sides digging in, the sharp exchange signals that the leadership battle is far from settled. Rather than easing tensions, the failed reconciliation effort appears to have reinforced existing divisions, raising further questions about the party’s ability to present a united front in the near future.