The vice presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in last year’s election, Datti Baba-Ahmed, has said the national chairman of the party, Julius Abure, was not removed by any governor but by the constitution of the party after the expiration of his tenure.

Baba-Ahmed, who spoke during the inaugural meeting of the National Caretaker Committee on Tuesday in Abuja, called on the Abure-led National Working Committee to sheath their swords and join hands with the Caretaker Committee to rebuild the party.

He said: “Listen, my friend, no governor unseated Abure. The constitution unseated him because his (Abure) tenure had elapsed. As of today, Abure is our good friend and a loyal member. We want him back in the fold. We have a role for him to play. Likewise all members of the former NEC and NWC. They are welcome to come and join us and continue to build the Labour Party.”

Baba-Ahmed also said the LP will win the 2027 presidential election and win more seats in the National Assembly.

He said: “We didn’t have a crisis. We managed a transition that was a bit bumpy and that was it. I tell you, no other political party of our size could do that in the time and manner that we did. We are a political party that went all the way to the Supreme Court claiming our 10 million votes. They were only able to give us 6 million votes. So we are a force to contend with in Africa. What we’ve done has never been done before. When PDP came they had the military. We had nothing.

The Chairman of the Labour Party National Caretaker Committee, Senator Nenadi Usman assured of the committee’s determination to rescue the party from the current challenges and restore and rebuild it as a veritable alternative platform for Nigerians.

She pledged the readiness of the caretaker committee to lead the party to the path of reconciliation within the short period of its assignment.

Usman called for sacrifice from members of the caretaker committee, urging them to carry out their assignment with integrity in the interest of the party and the nation at large.

She said: “My brothers and sisters, we are on a rescue mission, not just for the Labour Party, but I tell you for our dear nation Nigeria. The interest this committee has generated extends beyond party lines. The number of telephone calls I have received not just from Labour Party members, but people from other political parties who told me that if we get this thing right, we will walk together. So we have a huge task.

“Our party by the grace of Almighty God will become a platform for all disenfranchised and unhappy Nigerians. For people who are not happy with the way things are going, we are going to be the platform for them by the grace of God. Therefore, we must view this significant national assignment.”

Deputy governor of Abia state, Ikechukwu Emetu, who represented the Governor, Alex Otti charged the committee members to work for the growth of the Labour Party and shun acts that can be detrimental to the interest of the party.

The secretary of the committee, Senator Darlington Nwokocha said the committee would ensure that it produced elected Ward, LGA, States, and National Officers for the party.

“We have started already, it is something we are working hard to achieve. The organs of the party at all levels will come on board soon, depending on the elasticity of what we are doing, but we want to do a good job, we will do the proper sensitisation, advocacy, consultation, consensus building and so many other legitimate things from the grassroots to the top, to making sure that the proper people are being put in place of leadership, elected from the ward to local government, to states and the national convention”.

The Lagos State Government has raised the alarm over an imminent building collapse at Mopol 20 Barracks, Onigbongbo in the Ikeja area of the state.

This is as the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency is set to begin an emergency evacuation at the old block 3 section of the barracks.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Permanent Secretary of LASEMA, Damilola Oke-Osanyintolu, said its response team had assessed some parts of the structure and found them to be in a precarious condition.

Oke-Osanyintolu stated the building and adjacent structures would also be evacuated immediately to prevent any loss of life or property.

Police barracks

“The Agency dispatched a response team to the location and the findings indicate that the building and those adjacent must be evacuated with immediate effect. We are conducting a response plan which comprises an assessment, safe and orderly evacuation and controlled demolition

“Under the watchful eye of the Babajide Olusola Sanwoolu administration, we will be carrying out this preemptive demolition action due to the precarious conditions of the building and possible secondary incidents that could occur if left unmanaged,” the statement partly read.

He, however, urged members of the public within the vicinity to remain calm and refrain from spreading misinformation on social media.

He also assured that the situation was being closely monitored and managed.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, in a statement in July, disclosed that the police were carrying out a comprehensive renovation of some police barracks in the state.

He noted that the renovation would be carried out in partnership with the state government.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has denied reports that Yahaya Bello, former governor of Kogi State, is in its custody.

The EFCC in a terse media Statement on X formerly Twitter by its head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, said the former governor is not in its holding facility and remains a wanted man with a valid warrant of arrest.

Recall that the Director of the Yahaya Bello Media Office, Ohiare Michael, said he had honoured the invitation of the anti-graft agency on Wednesday.

According to the release, the former governor was accompanied to the EFCC Headquarters by high profile Nigerians.

But the anti-graft agency in a statement by its spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said that Bello remained wanted with a subsisting warrant of arrest.

“Media reports today that a former Governor of Kogi State, Mr. Yahaya Bello is in the holding facility of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is incorrect. The Commission wishes to state that Bello is not in its custody.

“Bello, already declared wanted by the Commission for alleged N80.2 billion money laundering charges, remains wanted with a subsisting warrant for his arrest,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Commission had declared Bello wanted after a series of failed attempts to get him arrested over alleged money laundering to the tune of N80 billion.