Byline: Politics Desk
The Labour Party (LP) is once again caught in a storm. An airport confrontation involving chairman Julius Abure and activist “Mama P” has sparked a fierce clash with the Obidient Movement, reviving long-standing tensions between the party’s leadership and its grassroots.
Developing facts:
At Benin Airport, Abure was accosted by a supporter of former presidential candidate Peter Obi. The incident, filmed and circulated online, triggered a chain reaction:
- The Labour Party’s Directorate of Mobilisation and Integration (DMI) urged Obi to “rein in” his followers.
- The Obidient Movement leadership accused Abure of sending armed thugs after Mama P, branding it an assault on democracy.
- Calls for police investigation are mounting, with the Inspector-General of Police petitioned to probe the alleged attack.
The split has again placed Obi, who commands the loyalty of millions of young Nigerians, at the centre of an internal crisis.
A Party Torn Between Grassroots Passion and Leadership Struggles
The Labour Party has historically been marginal in Nigeria’s politics. That changed in 2022–23, when Obi’s presidential campaign mobilised unprecedented youth energy. The Obidient Movement — largely online, urban, and youth-driven — turned LP into a national contender.
In the 2023 election, Obi polled 6.1 million votes (25% of the total), winning Lagos, Abuja, and 11 states. Surveys by Afrobarometer show over 70% of urban Nigerians under 35 identify positively with the Obidient brand.
But the surge also created a structural clash: a party leadership rooted in old political practices versus a movement demanding transparency and new politics. Political scientist Chidi Odinkalu notes, “The LP has a movement too big for its institutional house. Tensions like this are inevitable when energy outpaces structure.”
This isn’t unique to Nigeria. Comparisons have been drawn with Kenya’s ODM youth activism in 2007 or South Africa’s EFF student movement: grassroots energy that often clashes with party hierarchies.
From Viral Videos to Police Stations — The Fallout of Mama P’s Ordeal
The Benin Airport confrontation went viral within hours. In the footage, Mama P can be heard criticising Abure, before being surrounded. Soon after, she alleged she was assaulted by Abure’s loyalists.
The Obidient Movement issued a blistering statement: “To unleash thugs on Mama P is cowardly and exposes Abure’s bankruptcy of vision.” Social media hashtags #StandWithMamaP and #SackAbure trended, generating over 300,000 posts on X (Twitter) in 48 hours, according to TrendsNG analytics.
Police in Edo State confirmed Mama P was remanded briefly but are now investigating her claims. Civil society groups like SERAP have urged transparency, warning that violent intimidation in politics “erodes faith in democracy.”
The Labour Party’s Directorate of Mobilisation, meanwhile, accused Obi’s supporters of “mob harassment,” underscoring the polarisation: one side frames the clash as grassroots accountability, the other as mob rule.
The Next Battle: Discipline or Disintegration?
The crisis leaves Obi in a bind. If he sides with Abure, he risks alienating his movement base. If he sides with the Obidients, he risks collapsing party cohesion.
Nigeria’s next election is just over two years away. Analysts warn prolonged factionalism could neutralise the LP as a credible opposition. “Discipline must be restored, or the LP risks being a footnote in 2027,” said Abuja-based political consultant Jide Ojo.
Comparative data reinforces the danger. In Nigeria’s multiparty system, opposition parties historically fracture: the ANPP after 2003, the ACN/ANPP/NPC squabbles before 2015. Without consolidation, momentum fizzles.
For now, the Obidient Movement shows no sign of retreat. Obi himself has kept silent, but calls for him to act as a bridge are growing. Whether the party can convert mass passion into institutional resilience — or descend further into factional battles — may define Nigeria’s next electoral cycle.
.
This is IDNN. Independent. Digital. Uncompromising.
