Following underground moves to perfect a wave of defections from the Labour Party to the Peoples Democratic Party, Sam Egburonu, in this report , takes a look at the genesis of LP’s current challenges, wondering who will save the party
As the 2015 general elections draw closer, observers have expressed concern over the fate of the Labour Party, one of the opposition political parties that have made some impact in the polity by winning a state governorship seat and maintaining presence in the National Assembly.
Formed in 2002, the Labour Party, led by Chief Dan Nwanyanwu, is described by the founders as a “social democratic political party,” with “a centre-left ideology.”
In April 21, 2007 National Assembly election, it won one, out of 360 seats in the House of Representatives and no seat in the Senate. The party’s governorship flag bearer in Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko, also emerged the state governor after winning a prolonged legal contest.
Since then, the party’s rating has risen as some top players in the power game have reportedly approached it either for alliances or simple support to facilitate electoral victories.
During the 2011 presidential election for example, the PDP candidate, President Goodluck Jonathan, solicited LP’s support in his effort to gain votes in Ondo State and he got it.
Since then, the party, according to a source, has remained one of Mr President’s pillar in an attempt to garner support and votes in the South-West in particular.
In Ogun State for example, where ex- governor Gbenga Daniel ruled on the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) before joining the LP, the party had been polarised into two factions following disagreements between Daniel and Mr. Olabode Simeon-led executive.
The party achieved what an insider described as ‘a breather’ in Ogun just mid August this year, when Mimiko, Nwanyanwu and other leaders of the party intervened in the crisis to stop a suit against Daniel by a Bode Simeon faction.
A statement from the party, jointly signed by the state Secretary, Mr. Sunday Oginni, state Financial Secretary, Mr. Abayomi Arabambi and the national leadership of the party, said in part: “The leadership of former governor Gbenga Daniel is hereby affirmed and that the status quo ante in respect of Ogun State Labour Party executive positions at all levels in the state remain sacrosanct pending ongoing harmonisation which would culminate to congresses of affirmation in due course.”
Jonathan’s reelection and fears of LP’s death
Insiders, top players and the general body language of major figures in Labour Party tend to support fears that major defections in support of President Jonatha reelection bid in 2015 is poised to kill the LP. It is in the news that both Governor Mimiko and the National Chairman of the LP are set to formally announce their defection to the PDP.
The interpretation observers give to the development is that if Mimiko and Nwanyanwu actually dumps the LP with their supporters, it may finally announce the death of the party unless something unusual happens and someone emerges to save the party.
Some reports in the last weeks quoted presidency sources as confirming that negotiation for Mimiko’s formal exit and declaration for the PDP was in advanced stage with the governor. It is strategically designed to take place before the 2015 elections.
Mimiko, Nwanyanwu and PDP option
Governor Mimiko’s resolve to formally cross over to the PDP has been on the table over the years but it became more obvious recently when the Ondo State governor suddenly collapsed his political structure, the ‘Iroko Frontiers,’ into a Jonathan re-election group called ‘Believe Nigeria, Trust Goodluck.’
Insiders said though the move made great impression in Aso Rock, Mimiko was lobbied to go a step further by formally crossing over as the presidency considers him a very important factor in the 2015 battle for the South-West votes.
Without doubt, since Mimiko left the PDP in 2006 to lead the Labour Party in Ondo State, his influence and relationship with the PDP and other political leaders in the state and the South-West has remained a subject of intense controversy.
In fact, debate over his political role, influence and relationships dates back beyond that period. It would be recalled that he joined the PDP from the then Alliance for Democracy (AD) where he served as a commissioner. When the PDP defeated the AD in the 2003 gubernatorial election, leading to the emergence of former Governor Segun Agagu, Mimiko’s roles and political influence became a subject of debate. So, when Mimiko, who had served as a minister, left PDP to contest against Agagu in the 2007 governorship election, the battle line was finally drawn.
It peaked when Agagu’s earlier victory was upturned by the courts after a prolonged legal battle that lasted more than a year.
The animosities that emanated from these political battles notwithstanding, sources confirmed that Mimiko had remained largely a PDP man as he retained concrete relationship with the national leadership of the party and some factions within the state while entering countless alliances and agreements with other political leaders in the South-West.
A source in PDP, who spoke to The Nation during the week alleged that “it was this double-edged strategy adopted by Mimiko that sustained his goodwill in PDP but unfortunately created factions in Ondo chapter since the days of Agagu.
“You will recall what happened ahead the 2012 election, when a faction endorsed Mimiko against Chief Olusola Oke, the candidate that was produced by the Agagu faction. It was the root cause of the emergence of what we today call the PDP –Gbesibe and the PDP Jagaban factions,” he said.
Already, The Nation gathered that in anticipation for the eventual defection of the governor, a lot of realignments are already going on secretly both in the state, the remaining South-West states and the other zones across the country. For example, some LP leaders are alleged to have commenced moves to replace Mimiko as the leader of the party in the South-West in particular.
Nwanyanwu’ leadership
As for the National Chairman of the party, Nwanyanwu, who like Mimiko is a known supporter of Jonathan, speculation on his alleged plans to formally join the PDP at the expiration of his current tenure has been there for years. Contacted on telephone on Friday to comment on the speculation and the fate of the Labour Party, the political party he nurtured as the National Chairman since its first convention in February 2004, Nwanyanwu declined making comments to The Nation, saying: “I do not expect anything good to come out of Samaria. The Nation newspaper hates me and the Labour Party. So, I won’t make any comments to you,” he said.
Given his closeness to Jonathan and the open support he has been giving the president, many have, over the years accused him of working for Jonathan. Some even described the Labour Party under him as an appendage of PDP.
This, according to our findings, is ironically responsible both for the strong support and criticisms Nwanyanwu has either enjoyed or suffered over the years as the LP helmsman.
When he was accused of making moves to perpetuate himself in office, some top officials of the party said he should be given some credit for leading the party well enough.
The Nation for example had in an earlier report on him then quoted some insiders who defended him and his leadership style. One of who said, “In fairness to our chairman, he has very good reasons for wanting to remain in office at least till the next general election in 2015. One of his reasons is the need to build on the gains of the last couple of years by winning in some more states at the next election.
“He is the one known to many of the people defecting to our party across the country. He is the one assuring them that they will be well treated within the LP. He is the one talking to those who are yet to publicly decamp but already co-operating with us.”
The insider, a member of the executive committee of the party, concluded by saying, so, it is an opinion that he should be allowed to finish what he is doing by 2015 before the party thinks of changing guards. A change before 2015 may affect us badly as a party.”
Another source, a LP chieftain who did not want to be named, but who described Nwanyanwu as an asset, said: “Under him, the LP has made some impact in the nation’s politics. It was under his leadership that the party won the Ondo State governorship seat still occupied by Governor Olusegun Mimiko. We won a seat at the National Assembly and have dominated the politics of Ondo State for some time now. Apart from that, influential politicians, including former governors, have found this great party attractive options,” the source said.
True to that assessment, in the South-West in particular, the LP has for sometime been acknowledged by top politicians as a viable political platform. In the 2007 Lagos State governorship election for example, Mr. Femi Pedro, then a serving Deputy Governor of Lagos State under the administration of then Governor Bola Tinubu, defected from the ruling party, the Action Congress (AC) and ran as the Labour Party candidate. He lost to Governor Babatunde Fashola, then of the AC.
Otunba Gbenga Daniel, who served two terms as the governor of Ogun State, on the ticket of the PDP, joined the LP shortly after the 2011 elections.
How Jonathan cornered LP
As outstanding members of the Labour Party resolve to work for President Goodluck Jonathan’s reelection in 2015, some Nigerians are wondering how Jonathan cornered the party, originally seen as the voice of labour unions and the common workers.
Our investigation confirms that the resolve to queue behind President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 election is not altogether new. It is part of a strategy that was perfected since 2011 presidential election. This explains why some critics have insisted that LP has since then remained part of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
As far back as May this year, Nwanyanwu himself gave indication that LP’s game plan on presidential election has not changed from what it was in 2011 when LP queued behind Jonathan. He gave the hint during a courtesy visit of the organisers of Democracy Nigeria Beauty Pageant to his office on May 3, 2014.
Explaining that LP will sustain its support for Jonathan in 2015, Nwanyanwu told his visitors, “Our support for Jonathan will continue until the end of his tenure. The Labour Party will continue to encourage him until his tenure expires. If we have a presidential candidate, we will give it a shot, if we don’t have, the party will decide what next to do.”
Revealing the relationship between Jonathan and LP under his leadership, Nwanyanwu said the LP adopted Jonathan in 2011 because it did not have a presidential candidate and that while the members were still contemplating how to be part of the presidential election, Jonathan came to seek their support. “While we are looking at this, the president himself contacted the party for support. He gave us an appointment of which we attended the meeting and gave our nine point agenda. So, NEC endorsed that support and that support was based on the fact that the president humbled himself to contact us for support and he was the only one who came and we considered him and endorsed him,” he said.
Considering that this time around, Jonathan is not only asking for support but outright defection to his party, the fear expressed by members of the party and concerned observers is without Mimiko and his supporters; without Nwanyanwu and his loyalists, what is left of the Labour Party? Who will rise up to save the party before 2015? The fear is deep.
