Human Structure and Party Structure – The Fate of Labour Party in the 2023 General Elections -By Adedeji Afolabi

Dear all, don’t expect too much from the Labour Party!

— yes, you heard it right!

It is quite clear that the Labour Party is a mere fracture that lacks a wide spread national ACCEPTANCE as regards election matters. Though it has often been disguised as a third force but never convincingly being able to map out alliances and strategies to own up to this claim. This explains why it has no single seat in the National Legislature and why its candidate, Usman Muhammed only polled 5,074 votes in the last general elections – quiet horrible you will agree.

Evidently, individuals running on the Labour platform mostly fund themselves in the process and there are always dissenting voices to deal with. Asides all these, the Labour Movement should never be a party in the first place. It is just supposed to be an interest group. This explains why they are grappling with a whole lot now that they have a big fish in their net.

Notwithstanding all these, it is a bit different this season as more intellectuals have plugged into the fragmented bodies of the Labour Movement simply because of the candidacy of Mr. Peter Obi. And a lot more are ready to support these fragmented structure with finance to the tune of several millions as claimed.

Let’s Dive In — Saying It As It Is

Friends, this is going to be like the Endsars campaign, and it has already started: volunteers everywhere, people willing to spend their cash and time on structural formation of the party at the local and ward levels, proliferation of online groups in support of Peter Obi, other sinister attempts to infiltrate the campaign from oppositions, a predetermined move to gag the media is also underway with the announcement NITDA made a few weeks ago. But in actual fact,

The only way for Peter Obi to win this election is a pure awakening of Nigerians to massively go out and vote OBI’s Labour Party on that day – North, South, West and East, Muslims Christians and other Religious affiliations. But is he doing enough to get this? Your guess is as mine…

If this campaign continues this way, there is no way Peter Obi is going have credible votes in the North – as most Northern heavyweights are tilted towards either APC, PDP, or the NNPP block. Maybe Mr Peter will surprise us with a formidable VP pick from that end – we are on the look out. Carpet crossing have started while discussions of a merger is also underway between Obi and Kwankwanso. If this scales through – then we have a real third FORCE.

Even if the choice of a VP can fix this, then a handful of willing Labour leaders from the North still need to do some work. Funding, Funding, Funding, Funding, this campaign requires a lot of it. It explains why many personal engagement of Mr Peter Obi is not far reaching yet. This means that he needs to touch all the nooks and crannies of the Nigerian space. Online support will not translate into vote counts on the election day just by mere wish or prayers. You need to win the online community and the onsite community. Amongst the two, the onsite community is most important – simply because they are more and they turn out more.

Currently, there is no structure like the PDP or APC on ground, hence the Labour Party is not prepared or set up for the big fight – all odds are against trying to put this up only nine (9) months to the General elections. Therefore, in this struggle, THE FOCUS first Should be on LABOUR PARTY, and then PETER OBI and WHAT HE CAN OFFER. This is because, Mr Peter’s face is not going to be on the ballot paper on that day but the Labour Party’s emblem. Labour Party needs to have a subtle appeal to the uneducated class in the remote villages and other local areas in urban centres. if he wants to earn their votes.

The Way Forward — HUMAN STRUCTURES or PARTY STRUCTURES?

Human structures make the most of any Party Structure. Human structures voted Trump and Obama in their respective years of running for Presidency due to the consciousness they aroused in many Americans – new voters came out to vote their clear conscience of a bright hope to Make America Great Again.

Though OBI’s consciousness is growing and it is majorly to the internet users – the nigerian youth, Mr Peter may not be doing enough to stir up what he and the Labour Party needs to win the general elections. The hate for APC and PDP just seem to be the only push for him to bank on his acclaimed 20 million human structures.

Moreso, do we all need to be card carrying party members in order to vote in any election year? Negative. Only qualified humans are required. Then maybe Peter is not at a disadvantaged after all, he only needs to touch the grassroots the more.

However, this is Nigeria, he needs to be 100% sure these unverified human structures are actually on ground on that day. That is why he needs to sit up and physically move to where electorates are to convince them of his vision for a better Nigeria – the online campaign is just not enough to deliver at least 15 million votes if he needs to win.

It is also a fact that in Nigeria, party structures have far less than 40% registered vote cast in every election year for two decades now. So what’s all the fuss about Labour Party structure not being widespread? Here is the highlight from the 2019 general elections:

Registered voters – 82,344,107

Accredited voters – 29,364,209

Votes cast – 28,614,190

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Valid votes – 27,324,583

This stats was not so different from the 2015 and other previous general elections. What the Labour Party needs to do is eliminating voter aparthy and ensuring the new registrants are tilted towards Obi’s candidacy. It is no news that the Labour Party Structure in Ekiti State led by its chairman, Mr Banji Omotosho defected to the APC structure in the run up to their Governorship elections. This is a bad call for Mr Peter and as said earlier, the Labour Party was not designed to be a full fledged political party. He needs to build the party for another serious election year, but definitely not 2023.

I know he will not make all the perfect decisions as the build up to the elections draw closer. I also trust that he has counted his cost before making a move to joining the Labour Party after withdrawing from the PDP block. This is important because if he doesn’t win – then, NOTHING CHANGES in our polity and yet again, many of our hopeful youth might also lose hope for a better nation in the next few years.

It is also important to know that many nigerian youth seek the country’s development and whoever they decide to support in achieving that is up to them and their rights should be respected. We should be more concerned about this than exalting any politician above scrutiny.

… to the acclaimed 20 million human structures, I urge you all out there to spread the consciousness of a new hope in town. Let’s get Obi’s name and party to the new and dormant Voters, the market women, the fathers and mothers in those communities and lets change the narrative. Only individual votes count win elections and not “party structures.” #WeCantContinueLikeThis

“I believe that if Nigerians rise to say, Enough is Enough, then truly, Enough is Enough damn party structures. I stand with Obi.”

Adedeji Afolabi writes from the Ministry of Justice, Lagos State Government.

Instagram and twitter @dejiafolabiesq

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