February 14, (THEWILL) – The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Labour Party (LP) has suspended its National Treasurer, Oluchi Opara, for six months.
The suspension was announced at a press conference on Wednesday, at the party secretariat in Abuja.
THEWILL reports that Opara had on Monday, accused Julius Abure, the party’s National Chairman, of fraud and financial mismanagement.
Addressing a press conference on Monday, Oluchi alleged that since assuming office in 2021 as National Chairman, Abure has engaged in a series of actions that not only undermine the principles upon which the Labour Party was founded but also constitute grave violations of trust and fiduciary responsibility.
According to the National Treasurer, Abure’s tenure has been marred by forgery, embezzlement, and corrupt enrichment.
She further alleged that the embattled National Chairman depleted the party’s bank accounts, often through fraudulent means, including forging the signature of the late national chairman, Alhaji Abdulkadir Abdulsalam, immediately after his demise.
Opara, therefore, challenged Abure to account for more than N3.5 billion being party funds raised from the sale of nomination and expression of interest forms for the 2023 general elections.
Reacting to her allegations, the leadership of the party, on Tuesday, summoned Opara before a disciplinary committee on Wednesday.
Speaking with newsmen on Wednesday, National Publicity Secretary of LP, Obiora Ifoh, described Opara as a mole who was being used by dissidents in the party.
Ifoh said the decision to sanction her was taken after she failed to honour an invitation by the party’s NWC to resolve the conflict.
According to Ifoh, “After the 2023 general election, the Labour Party was marked for total annihilation by the system for daring to upstage the status quo of the political class. Little did we know that the fumigation was far from complete until late last year when signs emanated that our National Treasurer, Ms. Oluchi Opara, a key member of the executive, turned out to be a mole in the house and has continued networking with the expelled members of the party leadership.
“Convinced that the Treasurer is on a mission to stifle life out of our very cherished party, an emergency NWC was summoned on February 13. Arising from the meeting, the NWC set up a disciplinary committee to try Opara for bringing the party to disrepute.
“To exercise its powers as contained in the party’s Constitution with the intention of a fair hearing, the NWC extended an invitation to her to appear before it today, February 14 by 10 a.m. to discuss the development. The party regrets that the Treasurer shunned the invitation by the disciplinary committee to clear herself.
“We see this as an affront to the party leadership and millions of our members who are watching how their party’s image, which they have laboured hard to build, is trolled by one ingrate.
“The disciplinary committee has, however, recommended to the National Executive Council of the party through the NWC that Ms. Oluchi Opara be suspended from the Labour Party for a minimum of six months. This suspension is with immediate effect.
“We sincerely regret this development. We, however, urge our teeming members to understand that this is a price to pay for success. We will continue to reform the party until we achieve the best, good enough to drive our New Nigeria agenda.”
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