Turmoil in Abia Labour Party Ahead of Local Government Elections
The Labour Party in Abia State is facing significant upheaval as it gears up for the local government elections scheduled for November, with rival factions conducting parallel primary elections.
In an interview with ABN TV in Umuahia on Monday, Ceekay Igara, the former chairman of the party and head of the local government electoral committee, stated that his group has completed its primary election and is now awaiting approval from the National Executive Committee for submission to the Abia State Independent Electoral Commission (ABSIEC).
At the same time, another list of candidates, believed to have the endorsement of the state governor, is being circulated online following a different primary election.
Igara asserts that his committee, appointed by the national leadership of the party, is the legitimate body responsible for organizing the local government primaries. He pointed out that the LP’s national leadership provided the nomination forms that his committee distributed to candidates, questioning how another faction could claim to have conducted a primary without these forms.
He firmly maintains that his committee has the support of the Labour Party’s national headquarters, emphasizing its legitimacy amid the ongoing
conflict.