The Labour Party (LP) in Enugu has been attracting high-profile members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) after its outstanding performance in the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections. According to Professor Paul Nnamchi of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and a visiting scholar at the Enugu State University of Technology, the PDP defectors are even seeking to contest the forthcoming Enugu East senatorial election next Saturday on the LP platform. This report provides an overview of the situation and sheds light on the views of different stakeholders.
The Enugu East senatorial election was rescheduled to Saturday due to the assassination of the LP candidate, Oyibo Chukwu, a former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) chairman in the state. He was killed on February 22 at Awkunanaw in Enugu South Local Government Area on his way to Enugu City from his Amurri hometown in Nkanu West LGA. The LP won the previous senatorial election by a wide margin of 104,492 to 46,948 votes.
The LP’s growing popularity has raised eyebrows among some observers. Chief Casimir Agbo, the LP State Chairman, has declared that “the Labour Party is now not just a party but a movement” after the party won the Presidential and National Assembly votes overwhelmingly. However, there are concerns in some quarters that some of the new joiners “may be seeking to reap where they did not sow,” as Professor Nnamchi told journalists.
There are reports that some of the erstwhile PDP members who are seeking to contest on the LP platform have not formally resigned from the PDP or from their positions as aides to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. Professor Silk Ugwu-Ogbu, head of the Department of Mass Communication and Media Enterprise at the Pan-Atlantic University in Lagos, has suggested that the LP ticket for the Enugu East senatorial election should be given to any of the three brothers of the late Chief Chukwu. He argues that this move would enable the LP to win the senatorial vote more easily and by a wider margin.
Professor Nnamchi and Mr Ogbodo have raised ethical concerns about the political maneuvering of some of the PDP defectors who did not see eye to eye politically with the late Chief Chukwu up to the point he was killed by political opponents. They suggest that the sympathies of the people are strong with the Chukwu family, and fielding any of the Chukwu brothers would enable the LP to win the senatorial vote more easily.
The growing popularity of the Labour Party in Enugu has attracted high-profile members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who are seeking to contest the forthcoming Enugu East senatorial election on the LP platform. While some observers have hailed the LP’s growing popularity, others have raised concerns about the political maneuvering of some of the PDP defectors and the ethical implications of their actions. The LP may increase its chances of winning the election by fielding any of the three brothers of the late Chief Chukwu, who is highly respected for his contributions to the public good.
