The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, is yet to congratulate Julius Abure after the Appeal Court affirmed him as the National Chairman of the LP.

Abure was recognized by the Justice Hamma Barka-led three-member panel of the appellate court.

The judgment delivered on Friday disregarded two separate appeals filed by Senator Esther Nenadi Usman and the Caretaker Committee and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Hours after the judgment, Obi, who is known to always dish out timely congratulatory messages to successful Nigerians home and abroad, is yet to issue a statement concerning the development in his party.

This signifies the extent of the crack within the LP, the party that enabled him to attain third position with about six million votes in the 2023 presidential election.

The cracks in the party was noticed after Abure retained his seat as national chairman at a convention snubbed by Obi and other big wigs of the party.

On why he snubbed the convention, Obi told Nigerians on X Space that the party leadership under Abure didn't carry out a wide consultation with key stakeholders before holding the convention.

Shortly after addressing Nigerians, Abure was sacked as national chairman and a 29-member caretaker committee supported by Obi was constituted at a meeting hosted by the only LP Governor, Alex Otti of Abia State.

At the meeting, Senator Esther Nenadi Usman was named as chairman and Hon. Darlington Nwokocha as secretary.

Speaking about the development at the party's caretaker committee meeting in Abuja, Obi denied claims that Abure was unlawfully removed, especially by a governor.

Represented by his running mate in the 2023 election, Datti Baba-Ahmed, Obi said, “Listen my friend, no governor unseated Abure, the constitution unseated him. Abure’s time elapsed. Nobody unseated him. As of today, Abure is our good friend, and a loyal member. We want him back in the fold, we have roles for him to play."

Since the caretaker committee sacked Abure, Obi has been seen frolicking with its members, despite Abure's claim as the rightful chairman of the party and also offering automatic ticket to Obi to contest the 2027 presidential election.

With the Appeal Court's Friday judgment, a realignment might begin to take shape unless the caretaker committee heads to the Supreme Court to set aside the ruling that favoured Abure.

Friday's ruling might also deepen the cracks in the party, aiding rumours that Obi is heading back to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to reunite with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

Obi was Atiku's running mate in the 2019 presidential election which they lost to incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari.

They parted ways in 2023 and ran against each other but lost to Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress who was named by INEC as President.