The Labour Party Directorate of Mobilisation and Integration has announced plans to appoint state coordinators and mobilise individuals with proven integrity across Nigeria to strengthen the party’s structure at the grassroots level.
This move comes in the wake of the 2023 general elections as part of a strategic plan to build a more effective and cohesive party structure.
The inauguration of the state coordinators will take place on Friday at the respective Labour Party State Secretariats, according to Nigerian Tribune.
This event is seen as a key step in the party’s efforts to restructure and expand its influence. The initiative aims to bring the state directorates closer to the national party leadership, with the newly appointed coordinators working alongside state party chairmen to implement the party’s strategies at the local level.
As part of the restructuring, the state directorates will play an important role in recruiting members, integrating grassroots groups, and supporting the party’s operations during campaigns. The directorates will consist of a state coordinator, assistant coordinator, state secretary, and representatives from each senatorial zone, forming the state mobilisation and integration management teams. These teams will collaborate with local party leadership and report directly to the national directorate.
The Labour Party aims to address challenges faced during the 2023 elections, including the lack of coordination between the party and its support networks. By focusing on integrity and transparency, the party seeks to create a reliable and efficient mobilisation structure that can effectively engage with diverse groups, including trade and professional associations.
Additionally, the state directorates will assist in the coordination of campaigns, working to recruit reliable supporters and enhance grassroots participation. Success will be measured by the number of new recruits, the establishment of coalitions, and the party’s ability to engage a wide range of interest groups.
This initiative follows positive feedback from a recent meeting with the Labour Party state chairmen, who expressed strong support for the proposed restructuring. With these new structures in place, the Labour Party aims to strengthen its grassroots presence and build a loyal and dedicated network of supporters ahead of the 2027 election cycle.
“We are marshalling out what we call a tactical plan for 2027—a three- to six-month plan, and we’re going to make it a very easy and straightforward one. We will restructure the directorate and look forward to bringing in more hands that will take care of capabilities we’ve seen that are not currently in the directorate.
“So bringing more people, we’re going to set up the state directorate.” The state directorate will now have to work closely with each of the Labour Party state chairmen and the Labour Party State National Working Committee,” he said.
He continued, “The state directorate will be that interface in their various states, and when that is done, we will now see and make some training and ensure that we are able to pull in conveners and then set up the Labour Party conveners council.
” So, these are three key strategic approaches that the Directorate of Labour will do in the next three to six months. So, for the state directorate, we’re going to set up a team: the state coordinator, their assistant state coordinator, the state secretary, and then one person representing his senatorial zones.
“We are doing this because we want to solve one of the problems that we encountered in 2023, where there is no harmonious integration between the party and the support structure, where we could not individually identify people in terms of their integrity level or transparency level, and have some level of confidence in dealing with them.”
” So at the national level, we will set the strategy and be clear on what should be achieved. We would expect them to work with the Labour Party chairmen in their various states and implement them.
He further stated that the state directorates would help in campaigns and event coordination. “During campaigns, we are not just going to pick up people that we don’t know. We already have people that we work with, and then they will help us to integrate some diverse groups and reach out and do a lot of grassroots engagement.
““So by integrating into an existing party structure, you take time to learn and grow your skills, and when you grow your skills, you could either decide to be part of the party structure, or you could remain as a supporting structure, or you could also decide to be a candidate down the line. But we want to build a web of trusted fellows with integrity—not the one that will do a grab and run or the one that has an ulterior motive; it is core loyalty to the party.”
