VIDEO: Apapa Group Rails At Lawyer For Applying To Withdraw Case Against Abure-led LP

On Thursday, members of the Lamidi Apapa-led faction of the Labour Party (LP) were seen fuming after the Federal High Court in Abuja adjourned a suit they filed against the main faction of the party led by Julius Abure.

Their suit was adjourned to January 2024 following an application filed by a lawyer, Kehinde Edun, who identified himself as the national legal adviser of the LP.

The matter was instituted against the LP national leadership by Apapa and six other plaintiffs including Alhaji Lawal Saleh (Acting National Secretary), Comrade Abayomi Arabambi (National Publicity Secretary), Comrade Anslem Eragbe (National Youth Leader); and Barr. Akingbade Oyelekan (National Legal Adviser).

In their motion on notice, they had asked the court to block the party’s national leadership from fielding any candidate in the just concluded Imo governorship except the one sponsored by their faction.

They also asked the court to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from “recognising any other person or persons laying claim to the LP gubernatorial ticket in Imo governorship election slated for 11th November 2023 other than the plaintiff (Ukaegbu) who emerged from the primary conducted by the Alhaji Lamidi Apapa-led National Working Committee (NWC) of LP on April 16.”

They wanted INEC to upload Apapa’s name as the acting national chairman of LP and recognise all the Apapa-led NWC members, pending the determination of the motion on notice.

But Justice Inyang Ekwo had declined to grant the motion while ordering the plaintiff’s counsel, Mohammed Mohammed, SAN, to notify INEC to show cause why their request should or should not be granted.

The matter was adjourned to today (November 23) and was listed on the court’s course list for hearing.

At the resumption of the hearing, after the plaintiff’s counsel and others had announced their appearance, Edun rose up and announced his appearance in open court as the national legal adviser of the Labour Party.

Edun told the court that the Labour Party has no case against INEC and had no plans to replace any of its candidates as sought by the Apapa faction

“This case was filed without the authority of the Labour Party (Abure’s LP),” Edun said, adding he has instituted an application to discontinue the case.

Ekwo then asked Apapa faction’s counsel, Anderson. A, to respond to the notice of discountenance as well as Edun’s submission regarding being the national legal adviser of the Labour Party.

Anderson contended that Edun was not the legal adviser of the party.

Ekwo asked Edun if he had served his notice of discountenance on the faction, to which he replied, “I will serve him now.”

Based on the development, Ekwo directed that the notice of discountenance be served on all the parties so he can “take a decision on it.”

The judge subsequently adjourned the case to January 2024 for “hearing on the matter on discountenance.”

When the parties left the courtroom, the individuals who announced their appearance as Apapa-led LP leaders, challenged Edun for bringing such an application and apparently stalling their case.

“I have warned you before now. How can you say you are representing the Labour Party?” they railed at Edun who maintained a smiling disposition.