A recent filing in the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court has brought forth a petition to deregister the Labour Party (LP) and prohibit its participation in future elections overseen by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Labour Party logo
The suit, designated as FHC/ABJ/CS/301/2024, was initiated by a group known as the Incorporated Trustees of the Center for Reform and Public Advocacy. The defendants named in the suit include INEC, the LP, its Chairman Julius Abure, and factional Chairman Lamidi Apapa.
The petition alleges that the LP has violated both the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and its party constitution by failing to hold a national convention since 2019.
The plaintiffs seek several declarations and orders, including:
Declaring the continued registration of the LP by INEC as illegal, unconstitutional, and void.
Declaring the LP incompetent to sponsor candidates in any elections under the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act 2022.
Directing INEC to deregister the LP as a political party.
Prohibiting INEC from allowing the LP to field candidates in any election.
Restraining the factional Chairmen from representing themselves as the National Chairman of the LP.
According to the plaintiffs’ lawyer, Mr. Ukpai Ukairo, every political party is required by the 1999 Constitution to have its national officers’ names and addresses registered with INEC to operate legally in Nigeria.
