Chairman of the Labour Party (LP) in Anambra State, Chief Ogochukwu Emeh, has said the removal of the party’s national chairman, Barr Julius Abure by the Supreme Court would not stop the party’s governorship primary slated for today.
Emeh stated this in an exclusive interview with LEADERSHIP Weekend while reacting to the Supreme Court decision which upturned the Appeal Court decision that affirmed Abure as the LP national chairman.
But the five-man panel of the apex court yesterday nullified the Appeal Court decision, stating that the court erred in affirming Abure as national chairman of LP. It held that the matter was purely an internal affair of the party which no court has the jurisdiction to adjudicate on.
The Anambra State governorship election would hold on November 8, 2025.
He said that the party’s national committee led by Chief Clement Ojukwu mandated to conduct the governorship primary had been in the state for the past one week making preparations for the exercise.
“The governorship primary will hold in Awka and the national committee led by Clement Ojukwu had been in the state for one week now making arrangements for the conduct of the primary.
“Political party is a structure different from the executive committee. So, the removal of the national chairman doesn’t stop the primary which has been fixed because the committee mandated to conduct it is intact,” another stalwart of the party who preferred anonymity stated.
At the time of filing this report, two aspirants, Mr John Nwosu and a former managing director of the National Inland Waterways (NIWA), Chief George Muoghalu, were the only contestants for the LP guber ticket.
Besides LP, the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the state, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would also hold similar primaries today.
The incumbent state governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo is the only contestant for the APGA ticket while the APC has seven aspirants jostling for its ticket.
The contestants include former national auditor, Sir Paul Chukwuma; Mr Valentine Ozigbo; proprietor of United Nigerian Airline, Prof Obiora Okonkwo; Prince Nicolas Ukachukwu; former member of the House of Representatives, Chukwuma Umeoji; oil magnet, Johnbosco Onunkwo and Edozie Madu.
PDP, like APGA, also has just one aspirant, Mr Jude Nwafor.
