How Labour Party disowned lawmaker-elect for celebrating Tinubu’s intelligence
In less than 48 hours after a House of Representatives member-elect, under the Labour Party, LP, Hon Amobi Ogah celebrated President Bola Tinubu’s intelligence, the party has disowned him, saying that Ogah’s position on President Tinubu’s leadership is his personal opinion and not that of the party.
Recall that Amobi Ogah, after having a short meeting with President Tinubu and hearing him talk on the 10th National Assembly leadership in Abuja on Thursday, excitedly said in a short video with Channelstv “Today is my best day. Today, I’m so happy that I’m an elected member seeing my president talking. In fact, I never knew this man is so intelligent.
“I never knew that this man is so prepared to serve this country. I saw the love, character, and charisma. The belief that Nigeria can be a better nation. So I’m so glad that the meeting we had today is going to take us a little bit to a more stabilised house.
“Now, even without talking to us again, we have agreed that we are going towards the government’s decision.”
However, reacting to Ogah’s interview on Friday, in a statement issued by its acting National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, Labour Party said,
“Though as a first-time and newly elected lawmaker, the member-elect made the utterance which is clearly within his rights as an individual as enshrined in the laws of the land; however, the party has a view quite different from what the honourable member was quoted to have said.
“As an individual, he does not have the mandate to speak for the party and therefore cannot claim to be standing on the platform of the LP to do the same, giving views that are diametrically opposed to what our party stands for.
“Labour Party is presently in the tribunal hoping to retrieve our mandate which was expressively given to our presidential candidate on February 25, and every testament emanating from the tribunal points to the fact that the Labour Party clearly won the election but was robbed. We have remained resolute to our belief that justice will be done so soon.
“We as a party insist that the route to His Excellency must be excellent and anything other than that amounts to a mockery of democracy.
“We urge millions of our party members who are offended by Hon Ogah’s interview, which has since gone viral, to maintain their cool as the lawmaker has regretted his actions and has tendered unreserved apologies to the party.”