INEC Disowns Ogun Labour Party Excos as Daniel takes over the structure of the party

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Oladunjoye Opeyemi

The Independent National Electoral Commission has denounced Labour Party Officials in Ogun State saying it didn’t monitor any elections in the troubled party.

This was revealed in a letter dated 18th of December, from the INEC and obtained by NigerianEcho. The letter which was signed by the Head of Party Liaisons, Nkedife Leonard O., and addressed to the party was a response to the demand by the party. The party had requested that the Commission enlist it’s executives. The letter reads, “I am directed to inform you that the Independent National Electoral Commission has never been invited to monitor the conduct of the congress of the Labour Party in Ogun State, and so there is no way we can attest to the authentic list of party officers.

“INEC does not have any list of Labour Party executives.”

The letter also went on to state that the Commission and the Party’s Ogun State chapter has not made any correspondence since the 2011 Elections to the commission.

In another development, The Labour Party’s National Chairman, Dan Nwayanwu on Wednesday declared that the party structure in Ogun State had been handed over to the former governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, barely four days after his expulsion by party stalwarts in the state.

At a ceremony at the LP headquarters,the National Chairman, Chief Dan Nwanyanwu explained that the decision was taken as a result of Daniel’s pedigree.

“Before we took the discussion, we held several meetings before we arrived at the decision. You can’t write off someone who governed Ogun State for eight years and some people say the person is nothing. I don’t think they are correct. You can’t write off such a personality. He is a big fish.

“OGD is now the leader of our party in Ogun State and we, the national leadership of LP, have charged him to deposit all he has to make this party the next destination in Ogun.

“As he earlier informed you, he is bringing into the party, all the people that made his former party the winning party. He is bringing in a rainbow coalition to the LP and we are sure with the pedigree and experiences of OGD and the people with him, LP will take over the Abeokuta Government House.”

Daniel, who is being prosecuted for alleged fraud, had earlier been dismissed in a statement jointly signed by its Ogun State Chairman, Simeon Olabode, and Secretary, Sunday Oginni, accusing him of causing confusion in the party and also claiming the former Governor’s influence in Ogun politics was exaggerated as he lost his polling unit, ward, local government, federal constituency, senatorial and the state, during the 2011 elections.

Otunba Daniel after his reinstatement, however said he and his officials were in the process of rebuilding the party with high-powered consultations among LP members.

The letter from INEC has introduced a new dimension into the crisis rocking the party in the state as there will be an urgent need for a fresh congress.