The crisis within the Labour Party (LP) has taken a new twist as Callistus Okafor, a former Deputy National Chairman, has laid claim to the National Chairmanship position.

Mr Okafor has announced his decision to “take over” the party, citing a 2018 consent judgment from the Federal High Court.

The politician made the declaration at a press conference in Abuja on Friday.

Okafor explained that the court ruling, delivered by Justice Gabriel Kolawole, resolved a leadership dispute between the late National Chairman, Abdulkadir Salam, and a rival faction led by Salisu Mohammed. The judgment declared that separate national conventions held by both parties were “inclusive.”

Okafor argued that this ruling was ignored, allowing Julius Abure to inherit and build on a faulty structure to become National Chairman.

As a member of the 2018 National Working Committee, Okafor claimed that he and others are beneficiaries of the court judgment.

Okafor announced plans to hold an all-inclusive convention within six months to reconcile aggrieved members and unite the party.

He said, “The owner of the house has taken the house. When I mean owner, I am not contesting Labour Party leadership with NLC, no.”

“I’m talking about the process. The midwifing of this process (fresh convention).

“The 2014 convention is the right avenue to midwife it. For that reason Callistus Okafor is now the acting chairman of Labour Party.

“Sequel to the above development, members of the 2014 National Working Committee who are beneficiaries of the consent judgment have agreed to midwife an all-inclusive and expansive convention in compliance with the Consent Judgment delivered by Hon Justice G.O. Kolawole, and further agree to within six months embark on a purposeful reconciliation of all aggrieved members and groups to achieve a united, focused Labour Party that will redefine political leadership in Nigeria’s quest for a better nation.”

The Court of Appeal in Abuja, on Monday, upheld the emergence of Asue Igbodalo as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the September 21 governorship election in Edo State.

The appellate court, in a lead judgment by Justice A. M. Lamido, dismissed the appeal, marked CA/ABJ/CV/642/2024, filed by the reinstated Edo State Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu.

The appellate court, which described Shaibu’s appeal as incompetent, awarded N1m against him in favour of Ighodalo.

The appellate court affirmed the May 27 judgment of Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which earlier dismissed Shaibu’s suit challenging Ighodalo’s candidacy.

Justice Omotosho had held that Shaibu’s suit was premature, having not exhausted the PDP internal dispute resolution mechanisms before heading to court.

The Court of Appeal agreed with the lower court’s verdict.

“The conduct of an election as well as results are presumed regular until the contrary is proved and there was no evidence from the affidavit of the appellant to show votes were allocated to the 4th respondent. The suit is premature and the position of the lower court is unassailable.

“The appellant failed to prove his case as held by the trial court. The issue is resolved against the appellant and in favour of the respondents.

“Judgment of trial court is hereby affirmed. A cost of 1,000,000 is awarded against the appellant and in favour of the respective respondents,” the appellate court held.

Last week, the Federal High Court in Abuja also dismissed the second suit filed by Shaibu’s seeking Ighodalo’s candidacy.

Reinstated Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, has stated that his legal battle against impeachment was a fight to protect the dignity and office of deputy governors across Nigeria, which he believes has been ridiculed since the return of democracy in 1999.

Speaking after a thanksgiving service at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Benin on Sunday, Shaibu described his court victory as a win for democracy and an act of God.

He emphasized the need for the National Assembly to enact laws that would safeguard the office of deputy governors, ensuring they are treated with the respect and consideration they deserve.

Shaibu expressed dismay over the treatment of deputy governors by some state governors, highlighting the systemic disdain despite both offices running on the same electoral ticket.

He stressed that his struggle was not just personal but aimed at setting a precedent that upholds the integrity of the office of the deputy governor.

The deputy governor also called for an investigation into the death of Police Inspector Onu Ako, who was killed on Thursday during Shaibu’s exit from Benin Airport alongside All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Senator Monday Okpebholo.

Shaibu’s reinstatement by the Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice J. K. Omotosho, marked a significant turn in Edo State politics.

The court overturned his impeachment and ordered the payment of his salaries and allowances from April when he was impeached.

Additionally, the court issued an injunction restraining the state government from preventing Shaibu from performing his official duties.

In his address, Shaibu reiterated his commitment to serving the people of Edo State and working towards improving governance and democratic principles in Nigeria.

Philip Shaibu’s legal battle began after his impeachment by the Edo State House of Assembly, a move that was met with widespread criticism and legal challenges.

He said, “My fight to be reinstated is for all the people occupying the office in the country. The office has been ridiculed since the return of democracy in 1999.

“I will continue to fight to make sure that sanity and respect are brought back to that office. All I am doing is not to earn anything but to make sure that the sanity of the office of the deputy governor is restored in line with the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“What other deputy governors cannot fight against, I will fight on their behalf so that governors will start respecting that office.”

On his victory in the court, he said, “I challenged God, and I told Him that I want him to prove His power in my life, that people that are anti-God and anti-democracy are at it again, and they want to use me as a scapegoat, I told God to show to the world that I am truly his son.

“They said they will impeach me, and I will go to court and that by the time judgment will come, the tenure will have been over, I now challenged God to prove to them that they have touched His anointed and that the judgment will come faster, more than expected. I said I will need the judgment to come before the election.

“By the grace of God, democracy has come to stay, and we that fought for democracy will protect it; anti-democratic forces must be flushed out, and we will succeed.”

Shaibu also urged the youths in the state not to allow themselves to be used but should vote in the election to remove “anti-democratic people”.

He added, “This election is the time to change anti-democratic forces, and you must do it through the ballot. Don’t engage in violence, and I have been preaching this for the past year when the intimidation and harassment against me started.”