Mr. Ogar Osim, Chairman of the Labour Party (LP) in Cross River, on Friday told the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state that its mandate was to mobilise workers to support the party in the coming elections and not to select candidates for the party.
Osim said this at a news conference in Calabar while reacting to a vote of no confidence passed on him by the NLC and affiliate unions in the state.
The NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had met earlier and produced a statement signed by both chairman Mr Ben Ukpepi and Mr Monday Ogbodum, dissociating themselves and passing a vote of no confidence on the chairman of LP in the state.
According to the party chairman, the NLC is not there to lead LP, but “they have their mandate which is to mobilise, even though anytime I meet with them, they claim they founded the party and must take over.”
He said LP was owned by the people who attended its meetings and were active, adding that once a body is registered, it is run by a constitution and the constitution of the party is for NLC to send two representatives to LP meetings.
“In all the other states, the LP chairman goes round to tell the NLC what is expected of them but in Cross River, they want to dictate to the party what to do and even force candidates on the party.
“Candidates are processed by the party and not NLC; it is the party that will tell you what to do and organise its primaries in the presence of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) which we have done.
“It is unfortunate that in Cross River the NLC came together, collected money from some people and organised primaries without the presence of INEC and made them candidates of the party,” he said.