“Protesting NLC Leaders Stole Workers’ Salaries”: Abure Levels Serious Allegation Against Ajaero

• The crisis rocking the leadership of the Labour Party (LP) and the NLC has taken a new dimension
• Julius Abure and Joe Ajaero are at loggerheads over the planned national convention of the opposition party
• While Abure is insisting Ajaero stay clear of its affairs, the NLC is insisting they formed and owned LP

Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.

FCT, Abuja – The national chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Barrister Julius Abure, has accused the president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero’s camp, of stealing funds meant for payment of staff salaries, among other valuables, during Wednesday’s attack.

Recall that the NLC on Wednesday, March 20, shut down activities at the secretariat of the LP, demanding the sack of Abure.

The NLC members protested against the Labour Party’s national convention planned for the end of this month.

Reacting to the picketing of the party’s secretariat, Abure described the action of the labour leaders as a shame and act of rascality, Vanguard reported.

In a statement signed by the party’s national publicity secretary, Obiora Ifoh, in Abuja, on Thursday, March 21, Abure said:

“What we saw was a show of shame, a show of rascality, an abuse of office and an abuse of the law of the land.

“Nigeria Labour Congress is subject to the law. NLC under Joe Ajaero is not above the law and the law precludes Ajaero and the leadership of NLC to take laws into their hands, where they besieged the office, broke the fence, destroyed the gates, unlawfully took possession of the secretariat and destroyed properties worth millions of naira.

“Properties stolen, including monies, made for the payment of salaries and other official purposes. This is unfortunate. It is becoming unbecoming.”

In a swift response to Abure’s allegation, the acting chairman of NLC’s political commission, Professor Theophilus Udubuaku, among others, described Abure as “a man who is grossly irresponsible” and a liar.

He said:

“Abure should be reminded, since he is now suffering from selective amnesia that it took the picketing by Ajaero-led NLC to drive Lamidi Apapa away from the LP headquarters before he moved in.”

“Talking about lies, it speaks much about who Abure really is when he claims that billions of naira were stolen when the picketing was conducted in the presence of scores of policemen, DSS officers and pressmen. These lies alone define Abure as a man who is grossly irresponsible,” Udubuaku added.

LP speaks about Abure’s alleged fraud

Legit.ng earlier reported that the Labour Party on Wednesday, March 6, said no court had found Barrister Julius Abure, its embattled national chairman, guilty of diversion of party funds.

In a statement by Obiora Ifoh, its spokesperson, the party stated that the narrative that Abure alone siphoned or diverted the party fund “is clearly misleading and orchestrated to muscle him out of office.”

LP also insisted that Peter Obi will not leave the party over the alleged smear campaign against Barr. Abure.

The party noted that Obi had pledged his loyalty to it “due to its social democratic ideology, which suits his political vision”.

Source: Legit.ng