Meet the 10 Labour Party candidates contesting in the governorship election

With the governorship election slated for Saturday, March 18, governorship candidates representing the party at various states will bank their hopes on the success of Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the party.

While supporters of the party who are popularly called Obidients are yet to recover from the defeat of February 25, there is an indication that they will hope to make up for the disappointment by electing their candidates in the states and state house of assembly elections.

With less than 24 hours MyNigeria takes a look at the 10 candidates representing the party

1. LAGOS STATE (GBADEBO RHODES-VIVOUR)

Gbadebo Patrick Rhodes-Vivour is a Nigerian architect, activist, and politician. He was born on March 8, 1983, and hails from Lagos State.

Given the victory of Peter Obi in the state during the recently-concluded presidential election, Rhodes-Vivour, the Labour Party’s nominee for governor of Lagos State, appears to be the center of attention at this time.

Together with his political ambitions, GRV is also recognized for his work on behalf of Nigeria’s youth empowerment, human rights, and good governance.

The Freedom Foundation and Project Africa are just a couple of the nonprofit organizations he founded. He has also received praise for his architectural creations and has received numerous honors in the industry.

2. RIVERS STATE (ITUBO BEATRICE)

Beatrice Itubo was born on June 30, 1963, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. She is a mother of five, a fierce fighter for a good cause, and a far-famed Labour leader in River State.

Beatrice is the leader of the Nigerian Labor Congress (NLC) River State council and the Labour Party’s front-runner for governor of the state.

Beatrice Itubo was the former Chairperson of the Medical and Health Worker Union of Nigeria, River state branch.

She is also the former Treasurer of the Nigeria Labour Congress, River State, and a Pioneer Board Member of the Primary Healthcare Management Board. She has also held many other leadership positions inside and outs of River state.

3. KANO STATE (BASHIR ISHAQ BASHIR)

Bashir Ishaq Bashir is the Labour Party governorship candidate in Kano State. Bashir is a United Kingdom-trained engineer and of a humble lineage of Islamic scholars and merchants. He was born on August 2, 1968.

After passing his City and guilds of London institute, Bashir moved to the University of Salford, Manchester, UK, where he studied Mechanical Engineering, and later obtained a masters degree in Gas Engineering and Management from the same university.

He also holds a postgraduate diploma in Financial Management from Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi.

4. KADUNA STATE (JONATHAN ASAKE)

Jonathan Asake is a Nigerian politician and former lawmaker. He is a candidate in the 2023 Kaduna State gubernatorial election under the Labour Party. Asake is a former member of the House of Representatives.

He recently resigned from his position as the SOKAPU president to join the governorship race.

He picked the party’s governorship ticket at a substitution primary election supervised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Kaduna.

5. DELTA (PELA KENEDY)

Kawhariebie Kennedy Pela hails from Oginigbo in Ugheli South Local Government Area of Delta State. He is an economist, investment banker, and economic analyst by profession, an entrepreneur and real estate mogul by passion and a deacon by ordination.

He served as Director and Chairman of Ughievwen Community bank Ltd (later Microfinance Bank) which he also founded. However, due to an unfortunate mix-up, the license was revoked in 2013 and the matter is still currently in court with CBN and NDIC in a bid to restore the license.

In 1992, he went on to found ETOKEN ventures worldwide limited, a family-owned Investment Holding and Management Company involved in real estate, catering and hospitality and retail. He is currently the chairman/CEO of this company.

He has been married to Deaconess Margaret Etonde Pela for 32 years. She was a former banker and now CEO of ‘Margie’s Cookin’ and they are blessed with 5 children. He is an ordained Deacon, of the House of Grace Church in Lagos.

6. ABIA STATE (Alex Otti Chioma)

Alex Otti is a Nigerian economist, banker, investor, philanthropist and politician who was born on born 18 February 1965. Otti is the former Group Managing Director of Diamond Bank Plc, a retail financial institution in Nigeria.

Otti is a member of the editorial board of Thisday, and writes a fortnightly column, every other Monday, titled “Outside The Box”.

He is currently contesting for the Lagos state governorship seat in the forthcoming gubernatorial elections.

7. ADAMAWA (MUSTAPHA UMAR MADAWAKI)

Mustapha Umar Madawaki is a successful Businessman and Politician. He joined partisan politics by registering as a member of the All Progressives Congress in 2018 as a candidate for the Adamawa Central Senatorial District in the 2019 general elections.

Umar Madawaki was born on 10th March 1963 in the Gurumpawo community in Ganye Local Government Area of Adamawa State. He is married and blessed with children.

He started as an assistant lecturer before he started his oil and gas sector business when he registered his first company, Boldstar Nigeria Limited.

8. AKWA IBOM (OKON UGO USEN)

Akan Okon is a Nigerian politician and businessman born on October 1, 1966. He was the Honourable Commissioner for Economic Development and Ibom Deep Seaport in Akwa Ibom.

Akan Okon attended the University of Lagos where he graduated with a degree in Business Administration in 1987.

In 2022, Akan Okon resigned as a commissioner and declared his intention to run for Akwa Ibom state governor under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He is currently contesting for governor under the Labour Party ticket.

9. KATSINA (ABU MUSAWA IBRAHIM)

Ibrahim Musawa is the Katsina State Labour Party Chairman and doubles as the party’s governorship candidate in the state. He was born on October 28, 1946 in Katsina.

In the 2003 senatorial elections, he contested for the senatorial seat of the Katsina South (Funtua) Senatorial District and emerged winner on the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and served only for one term. In the 2015 elections, he was again re-elected as a senator on the platform of the All.

10. ENUGU STATE (CHIJIOKE EDEOGA)

Chijioke Edeoga is a lawyer, politician, and journalist. He served as Enugu’s former environment commissioner and is currently running for governor for the Labour Party in the 2023 Gubernatorial elections which is scheduled for Saturday, March 11.

He initially ran for governor on the ticket of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), but Peter Mbah defeated him. Later, in July 2022, he joined Labour Party after leaving PDP.