Members of the Julius Abure-led Labour Party faction protested at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters in Abuja on Wednesday, August 6, 2025.
They demonstrated against INEC’s decision to exclude their candidates from the upcoming Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections and National Assembly bye-elections.
The protesters, carrying placards with inscriptions like “INEC should respect the rule of law” and “Stop killing democracy in Nigeria,” marched around the INEC premises under security watch.
INEC had rejected the list of candidates submitted by Abure’s group, prompting the protest.
Meanwhile, the party leadership, under Interim National Chairman Nenadi Usman, in a statement on Tuesday disowned the protest, labeling the organisers as “impostors” and “political impersonators”.
The statement was signed by Ken Asogwa, Senior Special Adviser on Media to the Interim National Chairman, Nenadi Usman.
It quoted the LP interim boss thus: said, ”the attention of the leadership of the Labour Party has been drawn to an invitation circulating in certain quarters regarding a purported protest scheduled to be held on 6th August 2025 at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
“This protest is allegedly being organised by some unknown individuals purportedly operating under the banner of the Labour Party. We wish to categorically state that the said protest is not sanctioned by the Labour Party.
”The organisers are unknown to the party’s leadership, and the action lacks the approval and backing of the party”, they further stated.
The Labour Party is embroiled in a leadership tussle, with Abure’s faction clashing with the group aligned with Peter Obi, Nenadi, and Governor Alex Otti.
The party leadership referenced a Supreme Court judgement affirming that Abure’s tenure as party chairman expired on June 8, 2023.
The party’s National Executive Committee appointed Nenadi Usman as Interim National Chairman and Darlington Nwokocha as Interim National Secretary, which Abure’s faction rejected as unconstitutional.
