Some snippets from tonight’s incredibly popular Labour Friends of Bangladesh fringe meeting at the party conference in Manchester…
Tonight Helal Abbas received the backing of:
– Bethnal Green and Bow MP Rushanara Ali, who, according to several people, made a “fantastic speech” saying how important it was to get Abbas elected (I missed the beginning)
– NEC member and chair of the Commons Home Affairs select committee Keith Vaz, who described Abbas as a “long time friend…and it was time for the Bangladeshi community to have a mayor”. He also lavished enormous praise on Rushanara, saying: “I’ve sat mesmerised listening to her speak on the great issues of the day in the House of Commons.”
– Newly elected NEC member Oona King, who said: “This is the most important election in a long time because we all know what we are facing and every single one of us has to make sure we redouble our efforts to get Abbas elected.”
– New Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk, who promised to come to Tower Hamlets and bring his supporters to help elect Abbas
– Camden Council leader Nasim Ali, who, like Danczuk, said he would organise swarms of north London activists to canvass for Abbas
– London Assembly member Murad Qureshi
Intriguingly, I was also told that before the start of the meeting there was a row involving a Newham councillor. Apparently, she was demanding to read out a speech from Tower Hamlets councillor Ohid Ahmed, who, surprise, surprise, could not attend the gathering in Manchester. (Ohid, you’ll remember, was Lutfur’s campaign manager in the controversial selection process and is one of eight Labour councillors to have declared support for him at his campaign meeting last Friday – a move that effectively ends their Labour careers.)
Not only that, the Lutfur-supporting Newham councillor was, I’m told, trying to insist that Abbas should not be introduced to the meeting as “the Labour candidate”. She was eventually overruled and Ohid’s ghost failed to appear.
Small details, but it’s a sign of the problems facing London regional party chief Ken Clark. He may well have to consider many more expulsions than he realised…
Trial by Jeory 
Cllr Ohid is the Chair of LFB and did lot of good work. Ms Ali was not an MP when LFB was set up. Maybe KC should resign, because of him all this happened
What on earth Rushanara not being an MP at the time has top do with anything, I’m not sure. Theer was no labour MP at the time because an anti-semitic hate filled campaign against a Jewish woman black MP, led by the IFE/Jamaat controlled Respect party.
Totally agree that KC should resign and a major overhaul of the London Regional Party. KC has played of each faction against each other by his dirty tactics and has been doing so for a very long time.
Everyone knew there was issues with the TH labour membership and has been so for the last 10-12 years, which is why it has been in special measures, leading to members unable to select their candidates for local elections. This resulted in councillors unaccountable to the local ward parties as the wards/members did not select them, thus they didn’t have to worry about being accountable to their wards.
Knowing all this Ken allowed the TH mayoral election to take place. They went through a vigorous process during the selection to decide who was eligible to vote and who wasn’t. All this then indicates that they were happy to let members elect who their candidate would be.
Then to say there was irregularities in the membership and suspend the winning candidate on the say so of one of the losing candidates, is a disgrace and makes a mockery of the whole process, of the party and most importantly of the members.
Just because KC and a few other protégées of his didn’t get their preferred candidate, they then suddenly void the election and impose their preferred candidate.
This is like a third world dictatorship and if we wanted such dictatorship we would go and live in a third world country.
I am no fan of Lutfur and neither am I a fan of Abbas (I preferred Biggs), but when you have a election, you have to accept the result and the result was that Lutfur won it with a clear and large margin. We’re not talking about a few votes but over 150 votes from 800+ votes cast.
I commend those labour party members who are standing up to this injustice and dictatorship.
Actually, it is up to the electorate of Tower Hamlets to decide who they want as their mayor. They now have an opportunity to vote for either Abbas or Lutfur – or any of the other candidates. I trust everyone will accept the verdict of the people.
I’m starting a campaign here and now to make Ken Clark, Ted Jeory and Andrew Gilligan freemen of the boro’
If the allegations against Lutfur were so serious, after all fraud and ballot riggin are criminal offences why was the dossier not handed to the police, why has it been buried. Is it another dodgy dossier!
I agree the people will decide. This could turn out to be a major embarassment for Labour!
Stuart – are you suggesting that Lutfur commited a criminal act when he signed up and bought membership for over a hundred members? Or when Shiraj Haque bankrolled his campaign well over and above the regulated limit? Or perhaps there’s something more we’ve yet to hear about?
Personally I’m sure the Labour party rules have been brokend, but not so certain that any criminal act has been committed ( although we’ve yet to see his donation report).
Sadly trrying to gerrymander an internal selection process by clearly fraudulent means is not a criminal offence – but it bloddy well should be.
Abbas will win by a mile, you’re the embarrasment to the party.
You Stuart are the major embarrassment to the Party. Labour party Campaign officer campaigning for another party? Oh here accusing people of all sorts Shame and disgrace. Get behind Abbas or leave.
— NEC member and chair of the Commons Home Affairs select committee Keith Vaz, who described Abbas as a “long time friend…and it was time for the Bangladeshi community to have a mayor”. He also lavished enormous praise on Rushanara, saying: “I’ve sat mesmerised listening to her speak on the great issues of the day in the House of Commons.”—
And you wonder why Keith Vas and others got rid of Lutfur Rahman to replace him with his long time friend!!!
err Keith Vas was the one that was instrumental in putting Rahman on the panel.
— incredibly popular Labour Friends of Bangladesh fringe meeting—
Ted does that mean you are supporting Abbas to win?? “incredible”? “popular”? intersting words to use when Lutfur Rahman came out a clear winner in the Labour candidacy contest and is more popular that Abbas by far.
so much for journalism these days. People have their own vested interests sadly (with their gutter journalism).
Its a great shame we are losing quality impartial journalism these days!!
Read it again: I said the meeting was incredibly popular, not necessarily Abbas.
Your article and the presentation says it all. Its clear bias for Abbas. I am reading in between the lines!
Contrary to what JPM states I am not campaigning for another party. I am campaigning for the candidate chosen by Labour Party members.
I am going nowhere.
Oh you are Stuart .. you are …
On a slight tangent, I’m fed up with people say Rushnara is an excellent, “mesmerising” speaker. She’s AWFUL!
I first heard her publically speak at a hustings in mulberry school pre-general election when Neil Kinnock, Ed Milliband and Frank Dobson came. I was so embarrassed at her bumbling, inarticulate and dull words especially in contrast to the charismatic and powerful words of the guests. She was the same (albeit a little better) at her “community celebration” at swanlea school.
She’s a shrewd political operator and I’m sure very smart, but for an Oxbridge graduate she has as much stage presence and oratory skills as a lamp-post! And for all those out there who think she’s the cream of the Tower Hamlets crop, you’re so wrong, there’s better out there!!! A lot better!
This is an concerted effort by Ted to build momentum around Abbas’ campaign, which he clearly supports. You may as well call yourself Abbas’ spokesman.
Re 2 above
I thought that John Biggs was the favourite son of the London Labour Party. After all the original short-list comprised him and two lesser-known(?) Asian hopefuls while omitting both Abbas and Rahman.
Anbd of course Biggsy is a London Assembly member alongside company director and London Labour chair Len Duvall.
I understand former Chair of Tower Respect is supporting Cllr Abbas and number of other former Respect members is with Cllr Abbas. I want my good friend Ted to write about this!!
Agree with Rachel again, the previous comments apply:
Most people desperately need facts about the ‘unusual world’ of Tower Hamlets, not one-sided opinion.
In whose interests is it for Abbas to get in? What backbone has he ever shown on any issue? He has simply been used by people behind the scenes, so what’s in it for them and where do they want Tower Hamlets to go (apart from using is to shore up their power as before)?
What’s Ted’s reason for so clearly supporting those guys, given what they’ve been up to in control of the council since 1994? Where’s the proper scrutiny gone, which he established at the East London Advertiser?
And leaving individuals aside, might it not be better for democracy to have an Independent instead of returning the same old crooked lot to their comfortable positions?
Who’s seen Rushanara Ali anywhere around the borough? Does anyone know if she’s doing anything useful? Does she realise it’s under the Labour council that the housing crisis is getting worse, affordable housing numbers are a joke, etc? (see her concerns on theyworkforyou.com) What pressure does she put on TH council?
Shouldn’t she be saying that she will support whichever mayor is chosen, as the mayor is supposedly meant to represent and unify everyone ?
Or is the MP really only interested in petty infighting which has nothing to do with the issues?
[…] with those of his fellow NEC member Oona King, who actually lives in the borough. I reported them here; here they are again: “This is the most important election in a long time because we all know […]