Julius Abure, the National Chairman of the Labour Party, has congratulated Olumide Akpata on winning the party’s governorship primary, which took place in Edo State on Friday.
With 316 votes, Akpata—who had previously held the position of president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA)—defied his opponents, Prof. Sunny Eromosele and Ken Imasuangbon, who each received seven votes.
Earnest Àyègbè received three votes, and Sergius Ògún received four. Paul Iseghohi made the decision to not compete.
Abure asked other candidates to put aside their disagreements in an effort to promote unity and solidify the party’s position ahead of the September 2024 gubernatorial race
He encouraged them to integrate their support structures into the campaign for Akpata, emphasizing the need for a collective effort to ensure the Labour Party’s success at the polls.
Abure’s call for unity was articulated in a congratulatory message disseminated by his media team in Abuja on Saturday.
The Labour Party chairman expressed his confidence in Akpata’s ability to lead a successful campaign and ultimately secure the governorship seat, highlighting Akpata’s potential to effect significant change in Edo State.
The endorsement of Olumide Akpata by the Labour Party’s national leadership underscores the party’s commitment to presenting a formidable challenge in the upcoming governorship election.
As preparations for the electoral contest intensify, the Labour Party aims to galvanize support around its candidate, leveraging Akpata’s legal expertise and leadership experience to appeal to the electorate in Edo State.
He said, “I want to congratulate the Labour Party for having a free, fair and seamless primaries. You recall that I have always called and stood for a free, fair and credible elections and that is what has played out in our primaries.
“I therefore want to congratulate the winner of the primary election, Olumide Akpata, for recording the highest number of votes which made him the candidate of the party. I want to assure him of all our supports to ensure that we win the governorship election in September, 2024. We will not rest on our oars until that is achieved.
“We believe that Edo State at this point in time needs the best of the bests to man the Osadebey Avenue and today, Labour Party has selected one of its bests as the candidate of the party. If you juxtapose him with all other candidates that have emerged from the other political parties, it is clear that he stands out. We therefore congratulate him and we all will work towards the success of his candidacy in governorship election.
“Primary election usually comes with a lot of tension, bickering, politicking and horse-trading. However, now that the primary is over and a candidate has emerged, I want to call on all Labour Party faithful, particularly, those who have lost at the primaries to team up with the candidate so that we can all work in unity and togetherness for the victory of the party.
“Whatever errors we have made or pains any party member may have suffered in the process of this party primaries, we want to call on all and sundry to put it behind them and let us all come together as a united family to work for the success of the party ahead of the election.
“We equally call on the candidate to be magnanimous in victory by reaching out to all aggrieved members of the party. He must realise that he needs the support of all party members to win the general election.”
Meanwhile, the Lamidi Apapa-led faction of the party has disowned Akpata, saying he is not their candidate in the state.
In a letter dated February 22 and addressed to the National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, the faction identified Anderson Asemota as its governorship candidate and Monday Mawah as his running mate.
The spokesman for the Lamidi Apapa camp, Abayomi Arabambi who spoke with Punch confirmed that the two politicians are their chosen candidates.
He said, “The only Labour Party candidate we know is Barrister Anderson Asemota and his running mate, Monday Mawah. We don’t know anything about Akpata and where they got him from.”
