LP crisis: Callistus Okafor invites Abure for peace meeting, seeks implementation of 2018 verdict

Callistus Okafor, a chieftain of the Labour Party (LP) who recently declared himself the party’s acting national chairman, is seeking a “reconciliatory meeting” with Julius Abure.

Okafor, a former deputy chairman of the LP (south), said Abure became the national chairman of the party on faulty ground, noting that a federal high court verdict in 2018 had not been obeyed.

At the time, Gabriel Kolawole, an Abuja federal high court judge handling the dispute, delivered a consent judgment that compelled all parties to convene an “inclusive” national convention.

However, Okafor said he is the party’s acting chairman by the court judgment.

At the time, there was a leadership tussle between late Abdulkadir Salam, a former chairman of LP, and a group led by Salisu Mohammed, who had declared himself the national caretaker chair of the party.

A statement on Monday from the Okafor-led group said the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and other stakeholders have been invited to the meeting, which “is urgent”.

However, the group did not indicate the date of the meeting.

“Okafor invites Julius Abure, the Nigeria Labour Congress, and other stakeholders for an urgent meeting,” the statement reads.

“He said the stakeholders are meeting to discuss how to implement the 2018 consent judgment, where all factions agreed to conduct an all-inclusive convention.”

Last week, Okafor said his intervention is “a pivotal resolution of the long-drawn legal battle for the soul of LP.”.