|
Listen to article
|
The Labour Party, LP, has elected Nenadi Usman as its National Chairman at the party’s national convention held on Tuesday in Umuahia, Abia State.
With her emergence, Usman makes history as the first woman to be elected National Chairman of a political party in Nigeria.
It would be recalled that on Wednesday, 4th September 2024, Usman was appointed to lead the National Caretaker Committee of the party at a NEC meeting in Umuahia, following a leadership vacuum created by the expiration of the tenure of the former National Working Committee.
She successfully steered the party through a turbulent period marked by leadership disputes, which were ultimately resolved in her favour by the appellate court.
A former Minister of Finance and senator, Usman brings a wealth of experience and proven capacity to her new role.
As the 2027 general elections approach, she bears the immediate responsibility of positioning the party for electoral success.
Following its strong showing in the 2023 general elections, the Labour Party has firmly established itself as a formidable political platform, a foundation Usman is poised to consolidate upon.
Prior to the convention, Usman had been recognised as the Chairman of the National Caretaker Committee of the Party by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, following a Federal High Court judgement delivered on 21st January 2026 affirming her leadership.
This decision was subsequently upheld by the Court of Appeal in a unanimous judgement delivered on Tuesday, 21st April 2026.
In her acceptance speech, Usman expressed gratitude to party members for the confidence reposed in her and pledged to reposition the party for greater success.
She commended the Governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, and assured members that she would not let the party down in her new capacity. Usman also reaffirmed her commitment to fostering unity, peace, and reconciliation within the party ahead of the next general elections.
In his remarks, Governor Otti charged the newly elected National Working Committee to provide purposeful leadership and strengthen the party’s structures nationwide.
Others elected into the National Working Committee of the party include Iheanacho Obioma, National Secretary; Mrs Nike Oriola, Deputy National Chairman, Ken Eluma Asogwa, National Publicity Secretary; Mrs Oluchi Oparah, National Organising Secretary; Comrade Anslem Eragbe, National Financial Secretary; Hilda Dokubo, National Women Leader.
The newly elected National Working Committee was sworn in at the convention.
The Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Ireti Kingibe, says every aspect of the Electoral Act document has been turned upside down.
Kingibe made this known on Monday during an interview on Arise Television’s ‘Prime Time’.
The lawmaker said she was on the Committee for Electoral Reforms, noting that most items in the Act were not in the original one.
She said, “What they presented was not in the original one. I spoke to somebody about it. I said, I can show you the documents I have.
“In what election have we ever conducted, where INEC ballot papers did not have security measures that you can bring any type of ballot paper vote with it. It’s never happened.
“And so when somebody was mentioning to me, I said no, I didn’t see that part. It couldn’t have been there.
“I was on the committee for the electoral reforms. Two years we worked on a document that was acceptable, and we did bi-camera sitting.
“So it was not just the Senate; the Senate and the House of Representatives sat, as well as with INEC and some CSOs and came up with a document that we felt would give us free and fair election. We brought it and every aspect of it was turned upside down.”
The national chairman of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, David Mark, has warned that Nigeria is drifting toward a one-party system, accusing the All Progressives Congress, APC, of weakening opposition parties and democratic institutions in the country.
Speaking at the National Opposition Summit on Saturday in Ibadan, Mark alleged that ongoing political developments were aimed at limiting Nigerians’ ability to freely choose their leaders and consolidating power within a single dominant party structure.
He said opposition parties have faced sustained pressure in recent years, warning that such trends could threaten democratic balance if not checked.
