The Labour Party’s Rivers State chapter elected a new executive committee at a congress in Port Harcourt on Saturday, and party leader and 2023 governorship candidate Beatrice Itubo declared the organization “no longer divided.” The gathering, attended by delegates from all 23 local government areas, marked the first full‑scale election of state leaders since a leadership crisis that saw the former interim chairman and much of his team defect to the African Democratic Congress.
Addressing journalists after the congress, Itubo said the era of factionalism had ended and urged any dissatisfied members to rejoin the leadership recognised by the courts and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). “There is no faction in the Labour Party. We are one party. We are only calling on them to come back,” she said, adding that further legal battles would drain the party’s limited resources.
The new executive, which will serve a four‑year term, was chosen through a consensus process that, according to the Media Talk Africa, dissolved previous executives and standing committees. Itubo praised the interim team that had steered the party for three months, noting their role in stabilising the organisation after the defections that nearly rendered it inactive in the state.
She also rejected claims that the Labour Party’s influence rests only on social‑media activity, pointing to its performance in the 2023 elections as evidence of substantive support at national and state levels. While acknowledging President‑elect Peter Obi’s contribution to the party’s visibility, Itubo emphasized that the Labour Party has always been rooted in a workers‑based constituency. “The party is a workers‑based party. Workers are the backbone, especially now when inflation and scarcity affect ordinary Nigerians,” she said.
Newly elected State Chairman Fredric Nwojie outlined the transition from a caretaker committee appointed by national leader Esther Nenadi Usman to a fully elected executive. He said efforts to reconcile factions resulted in most members returning to the party, with only a few opting out. Nwojie highlighted the Labour Party’s pioneering use of electronic member registration and reiterated that its membership is driven by collective goals rather than personal gain.
The congress also featured representatives from organised labour groups, including the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), underscoring the party’s historical ties to trade unions. With the new leadership in place, the Labour Party aims to consolidate its structures ahead of the 2027 general elections and to present a united front in Nigeria’s increasingly contested political landscape.
