The Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri the Imo State capital, on Thursday, sacked Julius Abure, and recognised Lamido Apapa as the National Chairman of the Labour Party.
The court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately recognise and publish the names of all the governorship candidates produced by the Apapa-led National Working Committee in Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi states.
Abayomi Arabambi, the National Publicity Secretary of the Lamidi Apapa-led faction of the party, also affirmed the court’s verdict at a press conference in Abuja.
Arabambi said it is now confirmed fact that Abure was running an illegal affairs of the party.
The court also dismissed Senator Athan Achonu as the governorship candidate of the party in Imo State, and others belonging to the Abure-led LP faction.
Apapa had in April dismissed his suspension as a member of the party as invalid, insisting that he remained the ‘legitimate acting chairman of the Labour Party.’
A Court of Appeal sitting in Benin City, Edo State capital had on August 14 affirmed Abure as the National Chairman of the Labour Party according to a statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Obiora Ifoh.
Prior to this, on May 26, an Edo State High Court dismissed the notice of suspension issued against Abure by some party members at the ward level but the judge, Justice Emmanuel Aihamoje threw out the case for lacking merit.