Francis Nwapa, a socialist revolutionary activist, has criticised the leadership of the Labour Party. He stated that bureaucrats and right-wing elements have taken it over. In a post on his blog, Francis Nwapa Watch, he argues that the party is no different from bourgeois political parties.
Nwapa specifically criticised Peter Obi, and other leaders for fixing the governorship nomination form fee at N15 million. He contends that this amount is too high for Nigerian workers earning a minimum wage of N30,000.
The party initially charged N25 million for the governorship nomination form, but after objections from Obi and other leaders, the fee was reduced to N15 million. Obi praised the party’s responsiveness to the needs of Nigerians, but Nwapa would have been more impressed if it’s lower.
According to Nwapa, the Labour Party was created by the Trade Unions and activists to establish a political platform for workers to take political power and implement worker programs to manage and control society’s wealth in workers’ hands.
However, he argues that the current party leadership has allowed bourgeoisie politicians to hijack the party. This makes it impossible for low-income workers and people to contest political offices.
Nwapa called on the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) under Joe Ajaero to remove the party from the hands of the hijackers.
