The lingering crisis rocking the Edo State chapter of the Labour Party continued on Saturday with the suspension of the former Speaker of the State House of Assembly who doubled as the chairman of the state caretaker committee, Rt. Hon. (Mrs.) Elizabeth Ativie.
Ativie’s suspension was, however, ratified during the meeting of the State Working Committee (SWC) which was attended by LGAs chairmen and their secretaries.
The party based their decision on alleged gross misconduct and insubordination by the suspended caretaker committee chairman.
This is coming barely a week after she was sworn-in as caretaker chairman of LP in the State by the National leadership of the party.
Chairman of the LP in the Ativie’s Uhunmwonde local government, Mr. Aghedo Okhiongbamwonyi said the leadership of her ward 4 had handed out the suspension.
Okhiongbamwonyi presented a letter dated May 4th which conveyed embattled Ativie’s suspension to the LGA.
The letter was endorsed by Charles Usiesefe and Mike Ighile, the ward chairman and secretary respectively.
In the letter, the party leadership cautioned her to restrain from holding out or parading herself as member of LP.
Besides, a letter dated May 30th which affirmed her suspension by the local government was tendered before the enlarged meeting of the SWC.
Meanwhile, Ativie, has debunked her alleged suspension by the State Working Committee, stressing that such action was “dead on arrival”.
She stated that she remains the authentic state chairman of the party and was not aware of any meeting suspending her.
“They should know that by the constitution of labour party, no ward or local government chairman has the authority to suspend anybody or the chairman”
“It is dead on arrival, I am the current state Labour chairman in Edo state” she said.
