Labour Party in Crisis Over Presidential Zoning; Candidate Disqualified

A significant internal crisis has engulfed Nigeria's Labour Party as the deadline for submitting presidential candidate nominations approaches. The core of the dispute lies in the party's zoning arrangement, with National Chairman Senator Nenadi Usman insisting the presidential ticket must be zoned to the South.

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We Labour Party stakeholders and supporters nationwide, in solidarity with the Presidential Campaign Council of Arc. Peter Agada, received with great shock and dismay an unconstitutional and unacceptable decision taken yesterday Thursday May 28, 2026 by the Governor Alex Otti-led National Executive Council (NEC) and National Working Committee (NWC) of the Labour Party headed by the National Chairman of the party, Sen. Nenadi Usman.

However, this position is being actively resisted by key party stakeholders and the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council. They are advocating for a candidate from the North, specifically backing Arc. Peter Agada, who has already paid for and obtained the presidential nomination form. Agada hails from the North Central zone.

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This is the decision to unlawfully bar Arc. Peter Agada, the most outstanding presidential aspirant of our party, from the party’s presidential primary, which is scheduled to hold today.

In a strongly worded statement, stakeholders and supporters, in solidarity with Agada's campaign council, expressed "great shock and dismay" at a decision they deem "unconstitutional and unacceptable." They attribute this decision to the Governor Alex Otti-led National Executive Council (NEC) and the National Working Committee (NWC), headed by Senator Usman. The stakeholders argue that the decision to unlawfully bar Agada from the party's presidential primary, scheduled for May 29, 2026, is based on "three untenable reasons" that amount to "bare-faced insincerity" and "undisguised fraud."

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These border on bare-faced insincerity amounting to undisguised fraud, assault to the Labour Party’s ideology of equal opportunity, social justice and fair play, presenting a devastating reminder of the corruption riddled recent history of the party’s immediate past national leadership.

The stakeholders further contend that the eleventh-hour disqualification assaults the Labour Party's foundational ideology of equal opportunity, social justice, and fair play. They view it as a "devastating reminder of the corruption-riddled recent history of the party's immediate past national leadership." The statement highlights that Agada had already fulfilled substantial financial obligations, including exorbitant fees for nomination forms, secretariat development contributions, and campaign expenditures across the country, totaling approximately N300 million within a month. He had also been successfully screened for the presidential primary on May 6, 2026, making the subsequent disqualification appear arbitrary and unjust.

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The unconstitutional decision to disqualify and proscribe Arc. Peter Agada from the oncoming Labour Party presidential primary took place only yesterday May 28, 2026 through a letter from the party’s national chairman, Sen. Nenadi Usman, after extracting from him exorbitant fees for various aspirant forms, secretariat development contributions and considerable campaign structure expenditures by the aspirant across the country, amounting to N300 million in the space of one month.