The Labour Party (LP), as well as the legal team of its February 25 presidential candidate, Peter Obi has ignored the 48 hours ultimatum given by the Party’s factional leader, Lamidi Apapa to brief him about the petitions before the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal.
Information Nigeria reports that the team’s reaction stems from Apapa’s directive on Friday that all the lawyers in charge of the petition at the election tribunal should brief him on updates within 48 hours.
Apapa was quoted as saying “I want to invite all the lawyers that are in charge, representing the Labour Party at the election tribunal, to give me updates in the next 48 hours because I am the one in charge and the one in the driver’s seat.”
The directive came after Justice Hamza Muazu of the Abuja Federal High Court in a ruling on Friday held that the court had the jurisdiction to hear the Party’s matter and make the order restraining the Party’s embattled National Chairman, Julius Abure and three others from parading themselves as national officers of the Labour Party.
Justice Muazu held that the court would not stand by and allow a wrong in a political party.
However, the lead counsel to Obi and LP, Levi Uzoukwu, disclosed on Sunday that the legal team has no business with Apapa, adding that the factional leader didn’t brief them, therefore they are not answerable to him in any way.
Ignoring Apapa’s directive on the briefing, Obi’s legal team leader said, “He never briefed us; we are not answerable to him and we will never be answerable to him.”
