Senator Ireti Kingibe says the Labour Party is too fractured to win any elections in its current state, citing internal wrangling and leadership disputes as key setbacks.
Speaking on Political Paradigm, a Channels Television programme aired Tuesday, the lawmaker representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in the Senate confirmed she remains a member of the Labour Party but has aligned with the newly formed opposition coalition under the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
“Yes, I am still a member of the Labour Party, but I support the ADC,” Kingibe said, explaining that the Labour Party’s internal crisis has made it unfit as a viable platform.
“Labour Party is in some sort of quagmire. We’re trying to put it together, but in its current state, it’s not a vehicle that can win any election. It’s been fractured and broken,” she said.
With local government elections approaching in the FCT, Kingibe said she and other opposition figures have turned to the ADC, which she described as having “credible candidates.” She added, “We needed a platform. The Labour Party would have been that platform, but it’s broken. There are two factions right now. I know the FCT can be won — just not by the APC.”
When asked whether she might officially leave the Labour Party, the 71-year-old lawmaker responded, “Maybe, I might eventually.”
Her comments come amid growing momentum behind an opposition alliance ahead of the 2027 general election. On July 2, 2025, key political figures — including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s Peter Obi, former Senate President David Mark, and former governors Nasir El-Rufai and Rotimi Amaechi — adopted the ADC as the official platform for a united opposition coalition.
The alliance hopes to unseat President Bola Tinubu, whose administration has been widely criticized for economic mismanagement, surging inflation, and a worsening cost-of-living crisis.
Opposition leaders are banking on the combined strength of Atiku and Obi, who polled over 12 million votes collectively in the 2023 presidential election — more than four million votes ahead of Tinubu’s declared total by INEC.
