From Tony Osauzo, Benin
An enlarged meeting of the State Working Committee (SWC) of the Edo State chapter of Labour Party (LP), has suspended the Chairman of the party’s Caretaker Committee in the state, Elizabeth Ativie, over alleged gross misconduct and insubordination.
The suspension is coming barely one week after the National leadership of the party dissolved the Kelly Ogbaloi-led state party executives and set up a Caretaker Committee to run the affairs of the party in the state.
The enlarged meeting of the State Working Committee of party which was attended by Local Government Chairmen and Secretaries reportedly issued the suspension of Ativie Saturday evening.
The Chairman of the LP in Ativie’s Uhunmwonde Local Government, Aghedo Okhiongbamwonyi, had at the meeting said the leadership of Ativie’s ward 4, had handed out the suspension.
He was said to have presented a letter dated May 4th which conveyed Ativie’s suspension to the leadership of LP in the Local Government which was endorsed by Charles Usiesefe and Mike Ighile, the ward Chairman and Secretary, respectively.
The party leadership had in the letter, cautioned Ativie to restrain from holding out or parading herself as a member of LP.
Besides, another letter dated May 30th 2024 which affirmed her suspension by the Local Government, was tendered before the enlarged meeting of the SWC.
But Ativie, while reacting to her suspension, said 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 Party chairman in Edo state”, she said.