A viral video posted on Tueaday by Aisha Yesufu, chairman of the Labour Party’s campaign fundraising team, has sparked a fresh crisis within the party.
Yesufu vehemently denied National Chairman Julius Abure’s claim that the party was not involved in campaign finances, calling him a “big fat liar.”
Recall that Abure had stated that the party did not engage in financial transactions related to the presidential campaign, and that only Yesufu and Pastor Itua Ighodalo were responsible for managing campaign funds, according to the PUNCH.
Yesufu countered that she had records and proof of due process, and challenged Abure to account for the proceeds of the ‘Labour Party N1,000 Challenge’ campaign donations raised since 2022.
The exchange follows a six-month-old controversy over campaign finances, with Yesufu previously announcing that the fundraising team received N596m in donations, while Peter Obi spent N744,500,000 on litigation after losing the presidential election.
The crisis highlights internal party conflicts and raises questions about transparency and accountability within the Labour Party.
Abure had said, “ The party and I have been accused of being responsible for Peter Obi’s failure in the 2023 general election. They stated that the campaign, election donations and funds for the payment of agents were mismanaged by the party hence Peter Obi failed in the election.
“The election funding was done by Obi himself. As per the donations, the party was not involved. The signatories to these accounts were Aisha Yesufu and Pastor Itua Ighodalo. They were equally responsible for the payment of Polling Unit Agents.
“Consequently, it is mischievous for any person to accuse me and the party of mismanagement of these funds. At no time did the Party or its officials engage in any financial transactions as it relates to the presidential campaign.”
Reacting in a viral video posted on her official YouTube account on Tuesday, Yesufu, who doubled as the chairman of the campaign fundraising team, described Abure as a liar.
“That statement Abure made was a big fat lie. He thinks it was like those days when they used to do their Labour unionism when nobody had internet or keep records; those days they got away with everything. When it comes to certain things, I am a very detailed and process-driven person.
“There were times when the fundraising team was frustrated with me because of my insistence on due process. Before Mr Obi came out with his campaign account, the Labour Party had theirs. I have with me here a ‘Labour Party N1,000 Challenge’ post that was tweeted on 24/11/22. It said ‘Take ownership of the LP campaign by donating a minimum of N1,000 to Labour Party Zenith Account 1225832294.
“When that account was opened by Abure, I was very angry. I remember some people harmlessly saying it was no big deal since it was for the same Labour Party campaign. But I insisted that it is not the same thing because we don’t have access to any money that went into the LP account and therefore can’t use it to facilitate the electioneering campaign.
“So for Julius Abure to come out in 2024 to blatantly lie that they were not involved in any campaign, saying it was only Aisha Yesufu and Pastor Itua (is unbelievable). By the way, there are three signatories, not two as he said. Up till now, the LP has not accounted for the money the public donated to them neither have they accounted for the money used to procure forms,” she said.
