The lingering crisis rocking the Labour Party has taken a fresh twist as loyalists of the embattled National Chairman, Julius Abure, and the faction backing Abia State Governor Alex Otti, clashed again over the question of former presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to pick the presidential ticket of the African Democratic Congress coalition ahead of the 2027 election.

The disagreement, which underscores widening cracks within the opposition party, was reignited by renewed verbal exchanges between both camps over whether the LP should enter into such an alliance in its bid to unseat President Bola Tinubu.

Factional National Publicity Secretary loyal to Obi and Otti, Prince Tony Akeni, told The PUNCH in an exclusive interview that Tinubu?s administration can be defeated.

The spokesman also warned that the president?s focus on political realignment instead of governance would be his major undoing as he heads into the next poll.

?What should be conveyed to Tinubu and his brinksmen is sympathy. Let him know that we of the Labour Party sympathize with him because he is carrying, with this decamping domino, a nest of soldier ants,? Akeni said.

He also urged former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to shelve his presidential ambition and back Obi if the opposition truly intends to rescue Nigeria from ?the agony of misrule.?

?If Atiku can go deep inside his soul and demonstrate that he truly loves this country by standing up to support Obi for the presidency, he can then choose anybody of his choice, even if it is his lastborn, as the vice presidential candidate,? he stated.

Akeni maintained that only a united opposition could defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress in 2027, describing Obi as a disciplined reformist capable of replicating Singapore?s transformation under Lee Kuan Yew.

However, the Abure-led faction swiftly dismissed talks of any merger or coalition with the ADC, insisting that the party remains independent and strong enough to contest and win future elections without external backing.

Factional National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, told The PUNCH that the LP ?has not had any discussion with anybody,? stressing that ?politics is dynamic, but today, the Labour Party is solely standing on its own because we believe that any candidate we field can win the election in 2027.?

?We did that in 2023, and we can do it again. However, there is no automatic ticket for any aspirant,? he said.

Reacting to the wave of defections to the APC, Ifoh accused politicians of ?self-preservation, greed and fear,? arguing that ordinary Nigerians?not defectors?will ultimately decide the outcome of the next elections.

?Some are defecting because they want to win their re-election. Some because they want to stay clear of prosecution when they leave office. But Nigerians will decide who will be president, governor or senator in 2027, not these individuals,? he added.

He warned that the growing concentration of political power in the APC could endanger Nigeria?s democracy, describing it as a ?gravitational pull? that fuels impunity.

As the 2027 race gathers momentum, the Labour Party?s deepening internal rift raises questions about whether the once-vibrant Obidient Movement can remain a cohesive opposition force?or become another casualty of Nigeria?s fractious party politics. (The PUNCH)

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