The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday declared Julius Abure as no longer the National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP), and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Senator Esther Nenadi Usman as the party’s valid leader.
In a judgement delivered by Justice Peter Lifu, the court relied on the April 4, 2025 Supreme Court ruling that affirmed Senator Usman’s leadership.
Justice Lifu held that Abure’s tenure as national chairman had elapsed and that the caretaker committee headed by Senator Usman is the only legitimate authority of the party.
Consequently, the court directed INEC to immediately recognise the Nenadi Usman-led Caretaker Committee as “the only valid authority to represent the Labour Party,” pending the party’s national convention.
The judgement followed a suit marked THC/ABJ/CS/2262/2025, filed by Senator Usman. The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) was also cited as a defendant in the matter.
Justice Lifu dismissed Abure’s argument that the case was an internal party issue and therefore not subject to judicial intervention. The court held that the establishment of the LP Caretaker Committee was “a necessity” arising from the Supreme Court order.
The ruling comes against the backdrop of a leadership crisis that rocked the party, leading the Labour Party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) to remove Abure from office.
To fill the leadership vacuum, the NEC constituted a 29-member caretaker committee chaired by former Minister of Finance, Senator Esther Nenadi Usman.
The decision to establish the caretaker committee followed an expanded stakeholders’ meeting hosted by Abia State Governor Alex Otti in Umuahia.
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Abure had challenged the move, approaching the Federal High Court in Abuja to validate his position as national chairman.
In an affidavit he personally deposed to in support of the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1271/2024, Abure claimed that he was lawfully elected as Acting National Chairman on March 29, 2021, following the death of the former national chairman.
He told the court that during the NEC meeting held on April 18, 2023 in Asaba, Delta State, tenures of state chairmen whose terms had expired were renewed, and anti-party members were expelled with replacements appointed.
Abure said the party later held its national convention on March 27, 2024 in Nnewi, Anambra State, where he was elected National Chairman. He added that under his leadership, the party produced candidates for the Edo and Ondo governorship elections.
Although the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal initially upheld Abure’s case and ordered INEC to recognise him, the Supreme Court later overturned the decisions.
In its lead judgment prepared by Justice Inyang Okoro, the apex court allowed the appeal filed by the chairman and secretary of the caretaker committee, Senator Usman and Hon. Darlington Nwokocha respectively, and dismissed Abure’s cross-appeal.
The Supreme Court also urged political parties to adhere strictly to their own rules when appointing officers, and called on officials whose tenures have expired to vacate their positions.