The Julius Abure-led faction of the Labour Party has given Peter Obi, the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, a 48-hour deadline to resign from the party over his involvement in a newly formed opposition coalition.

In a statement on Thursday, Obiora Ifoh, spokesperson for the party, restated the party’s opposition to the coalition, describing it as a collection of “recycled, desperate and frustrated politicians”.

“Former Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Gregory Obi has received a 48 hour ultimatum to formally resign his membership of the Labour Party having formally joined the coalition party,” the statement said.

Obi, who was present at the unveiling of the African Democratic Congress coalition in Abuja, said on Thursday that his decision to join the party picked by the opposition coalition was not made lightly.

Ifoh claimed that Obi had been holding secret meetings with some members of the Labour Party to convince them to join the coalition.

“We are aware of several nocturnal meetings between Peter Obi and some of our members, lobbying them to join him in his new party. We’re also aware that a number of them have refused to defect with him,” he stated.

“Labour Party has consistently said it is not part of the coalition, and therefore, any of our members who are part of the coalition are given 48 hours to formally resign their membership of the party.

“Labour Party is not available for people with dual agenda, people with deceptive persona. The party will not avail itself to individuals who have one leg in one party and another leg elsewhere.

“People who, in the morning, claim to be in the Labour Party and in the evening are in the coalition.

“Nearly 70 percent of the Nigerian population are youths who are tired of the old order, tired of gerontocrats deciding their fate.

“The new Nigeria that the youths are dreaming of is not what can be realised from what we are seeing in the coalition.

“These people are opportunistic politicians who are only interested in relaunching themselves into the circle of power — people who are desperate to continue holding on to power.”

The spokesperson also stressed that the Labour Party remains focused on Nigeria’s progress and called on members to remain committed and uphold the party’s structure.

A Nigerian residing in France, Newton Ofioritse Jemide, who was extradited to the United States for his role in an $8m disaster fraud scheme, has been sentenced to three years and five months in prison.

Jemide received his sentence on Tuesday from Judge Deborah K. Chasanow of a US District Court.

Earlier report had it that Jemide, aged 47, was extradited from France after being found guilty of fraudulently acquiring federal grants intended for vulnerable US citizens.

According to the US Department of Justice, Jemide and his associates stole the identities of US citizens to open Green Dot accounts, which were then used to apply for federal benefits meant for wildfire victims between 2016 and 2017.

The US DoJ explained that Jemide and others in Nigeria instructed their partners in the US to purchase hundreds of Green Dot debit cards.

It said, “Co-conspirators living in Nigeria then registered the cards with Green Dot using stolen personal information from identity theft victims around the United States.

“As a result of fraudulent submissions, FEMA and the other federal agencies deposited benefits onto the Green Dot debit cards.

“Jemide and select co-conspirators informed other co-conspirators when the fraudulent funds became available on the debit cards and gave them information to cash out the funds from the cards in exchange for a commission.”

The US DoJ noted that Jemide and his accomplices took measures to hide their identities by using others to make purchases and withdrawals, conducting transactions at various stores and banks, and purchasing money orders made out to different individuals or businesses.

Providing an update on the case, the US DoJ stated in a release on its website on Wednesday that “FEMA dispersed $500 per claim on the Green Dot debit cards that the co-conspirators purchased for a total of at least $8 million.”

After pleading guilty, Jemide was sentenced to 41 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.

The court also ordered him to pay $520,431 in restitution and to forfeit $311,036 to the US government.

“US District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow sentenced Newton Ofioritse Jemide, 47, a Nigerian national extradited from France, to 41 months in federal prison for his role in a scheme to fraudulently obtain federal benefits.

“Jemide will also serve three years of supervised release, and pay $520,431.83 of restitution, and a forfeiture money judgment was entered against him in the amount of $311,036.64,” the statement concluded.

Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation, says the recent move by the opposition coalition to adopt the African Democratic Congress (ADC) signifies the complete breakdown of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

On Wednesday, ADC was announced as the official platform for the opposition coalition aiming to challenge President Bola Tinubu in the next election.

The event brought together politicians from major political parties, including the Labour Party (LP), PDP, and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Commenting on the development, Keyamo explained that under the law, no individual can belong to multiple political parties simultaneously, stating that the open declaration for ADC clearly shows the politicians involved have abandoned their former affiliations.

He said the development has strengthened the APC’s chances in the 2027 general election.

“The emergence of ADC as presently constituted marks the formal dismemberment of the PDP, hitherto Nigeria’s strongest opposition party,” he said.

“Majority of the old guard in the PDP (who have apparently lost control of the Party) have been pushed out of the party by the younger Turks within the PDP. That is why the gathering today was a conglomerate of ‘former this’ and ‘former that’ of the PDP.

“No matter how you look at it, this is just Atiku’s faction of PDP in desperate search for the 2027 presidential ticket — nothing more, nothing less.”

Keyamo pointed out that some APC members who joined ADC had either worked against Tinubu or lost their constituencies in the 2023 elections.

“Their movement takes nothing away from the APC; it is actually better for the party as it removes internal dissenters,” he said.

“The other addition to the so-called ‘coalition’ is a sprinkling of APC members who actually worked against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the last election and one or two APC leaders who lost their constituencies to opposition parties in 2023.”

He also discussed the political dynamics involving Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, suggesting that the coalition leaders intend to benefit from Obi’s support base without granting him the presidential ticket.

Keyamo cautioned that denying Obi the ticket could cost the coalition his supporters, particularly in the south-east and south-south regions where Obi performed well in the last election.

“The person who the old, cunning guards want to take for a ride in all of this is Peter Obi. They want his votes, but don’t want to give him their Presidential ticket, because this is Atiku’s show simpliciter,” he added.

“That is why David Mark is the interim chairman. Those who know politics know what I am saying. But if you do not give Peter Obi the Presidential ticket, you lose his supporters.”