Elizabeth Ativie, the factional chairman of the Labour Party (LP) in Edo State, has accused former presidential candidate Peter Obi and Abia State Governor Alex Otti of fueling the leadership crisis currently rocking the party.
Ativie, a staunch ally of the party’s embattled National Chairman Julius Abure, made the claim in response to criticisms of Abure by Precious Oruche, popularly known as Mama P, a vocal supporter of Obi.
According to Ativie, the crisis traces back to what she described as an “illegal stakeholders’ meeting” convened by Obi and Otti in Umuahia on September 4, 2024. She alleged the gathering was designed to undermine the party’s legally recognized National Working Committee (NWC).
“The problem in the Labour Party was created by Obi. It was him and Dr. Alex Otti who convened the ill-fated and illegally expanded stakeholders’ meeting in Umuahia for the sole purpose of removing a legally constituted NWC,” Ativie declared.
The Edo LP factional leader went further, openly questioning Obi’s capacity to lead at the national level.
“Obi cannot be a good leader, as he lacks the competence, character, and capacity to actualize the vision of a new Nigeria. A leader who cannot advise or guide his followers properly can hardly be a good leader. It is even more dangerous to entrust the whole of Nigeria into such a person’s care,” she said.
Her remarks underscore the deepening fault lines within the LP, where camps loyal to Abure and Obi remain locked in a fierce battle over control of the party. The controversy surrounding the Umuahia meeting has become a flashpoint in the dispute, with Ativie’s comments likely to intensify tensions as the leadership struggle drags on.
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