NATIONAL Publicity Secretary, Labour Party, LP, Dr. Abayomi Arabambi, has said the party was not built on religious or ethnic bigotry.
In a statement released yesterday in response to an opinion piece by Prince Kennedy Ahanotu, Arambambi said that the accusations against him were unfounded, denying being bankrolled by the All Progressives Congress, APC.
He noted that Ahanotu based his opinion on trivialities, abandoning the reasons why the FCT High Court restrained the national chairman Julius Abure and other executives, in the first instance.
According to him, "My attention has been drawn to the dishonest, erroneous and incorrect narrative spun against me by the former national chairman of Labour Party Julius Abure and his cohorts to divert attention from a perfect narrative of the crimes they committed confirmed by the Police and a competent court of jurisdiction which has granted a warrant of arrest against them."
He also noted that it's on record that the Presidential Campaign Council members were populated by a section of the country especially Anambra and Edo states which is against the Federal Character Act and the principle of equal justice which was the bedrock of the party.
He maintained, however, that all attempts to drive campaigns of falsehood against him will not sell.
"I hereby postulate the following questions for their immediate response. Was forgery committed or not? Was perjury committed or not? Where did Julius Abure and three others get the seal of the justice of the FCT High Court?
"Where did Julius Abure and three others get the stamp of the commissioner for Oath of the FCT High Court?
"Where did Abure and three other accomplices generate their own Treasury Single Account (TSA) receipt?
"This question are begging for answers rather than looping their manifestly corrupt action to APC sponsorship of my person to destabilize the Labour Party and give it police support colouration. The leadership of APC has no business with Labour Party or given it police support or colouration," he said.
He stressed that the FCT High Court has issued a warrant of arrest against the Labour Party's national chairman and three others.
The statement reads: "The Labour Party, LP National Working Committee, NWC under the able leadership of Alhaji Basiru Lamidi Bashir Apapa and Alh Saleh Lawal wish to bring to the notice of the general public that Warrants of Arrest have been secured from the FCT High Court for implementation against Julius Abure and three (3) others.
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"That the warrants of arrest are consequent upon the Nigeria Police Investigation and Forensic Audit Report that indicted Barr. Julius Abure and others for forgery, perjury, and criminal conspiracy.
"That Abure's public utterances, disobedience to the FCT High Court Order restraining him from parading himself as the national chairman of Labour Party and national officer if not curtailed immediately is a threat to peace and national security and unity
"That the conduct of Abure Kennedy Ahanotu and three others have now put my life and family in danger of imminent assassination since it's obvious I have now been marked out for elimination.
"That in order to avoid breakdown of law and order in Nigeria through public incitement by Abure which could lead to violent thrown of democratically elected Administration, the Inspector General of Police IGP and the DG, department of State Security Service, DG-DSSS are enjoined to implement the Warrant of Arrest already secured by the police at the FCT High Court to bring Abure and 3 others to face prosecution"
Vanguard reports that FCT High Court last Wednesday sacked Abure as LP chairman and restrained him and three others from parading themselves as national officers of the party. This followed an ex-parte application argued by one James Onoja.
However, a State High Court sitting in Benin on the same day, restrained LP and all its members from any suspension of its national officers till the determination of motion on notice.
Lamidi Apapa, the party's deputy national chairman (South), assumed leadership of the party following the court judgment stopping the party's chair and three others from parading themselves as national officers.
