Isaac Samuel
A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), Labour Party candidates, and supporters under the leadership of Barr. Julius Abure on Wednesday staged a peaceful protest at the National Headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to express their discontent over the party’s exclusion from the upcoming August 16, 2025, bye-elections.
Despite heavy rainfall, the demonstrators who arrived in multiple buses gathered at INEC’s Abuja office from 11:00 a.m., carrying placards with inscriptions such as: “INEC, who is using you against LP”, “Mahmood, stop destroying democracy in Nigeria”, “Tell INEC to obey court orders”.
Speaking on behalf of the protesters, Dr. Barry Avotu-Johnson, Deputy National Youth Leader of the Labour Party, demanded immediate compliance by INEC with a court order recognising Julius Abure as the party’s National Chairman.
He said: “We are here to demand that INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, respect the valid court judgment affirming Barr. Julius Abure as our National Chairman,
“We also insist that INEC must upload the names of our validly nominated candidates for the forthcoming bye-elections. Democracy thrives on justice and rule of law. Nigeria must not be an exception.”
An official of the Labour Party in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Peter Ugwu,
also addressed the crowd
“We conducted our primaries in line with INEC guidelines. Other parties have had their candidates uploaded. Ours are unjustly excluded. INEC must correct this anomaly.”
Representing the CSOs, Peter Piper noted the broader implications of the exclusion, saying it .”this is about the integrity of Nigeria’s democracy. An injury to one is an injury to all. We cannot allow illegal suppression of political participation.”
Responding on behalf of INEC, National Commissioner, Abdulahi Zuru, who received the protesters, assured them that their message would be conveyed to the commission’s leadership.
