Abia State Governor Alex Otti has clarified that his support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in his capacity as Nigeria’s president is separate from his personal choice of candidate for the 2027 presidential election.
Otti made the clarification during an interview with ARISE News anchor Ojy Okpe, amid questions about his relationship with Tinubu, his position on the president’s re-election bid and his continued membership of the Labour Party (LP).
The governor said he had already made it clear that he had a preferred presidential candidate for the 2027 election and would support that candidate.
“For the 2027 election, I had said that I have a presidential candidate,” Otti said when asked about his position.
Asked whether he intended to support that candidate, he replied, “Yes.”
On whether he was supporting Tinubu, Otti said the question should be viewed in the context of his responsibilities as a governor and member of the National Economic Council.
He said Tinubu had the constitutional right to seek another term, while stressing that governors were expected to work with the president regardless of their individual political preferences.
“I had said he has the right to run, and nobody can stop him from running,” Otti said.
He added that his participation in federal economic policy discussions as a member of the National Economic Council should not be interpreted as an endorsement of Tinubu’s 2027 presidential bid.
“What I talked about is supporting the president as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As time goes on, it is for me now to decide who to support,” he said.
“But at the moment, I have a presidential candidate, and it’s expected that I will support my presidential candidate.”
Otti also defended his decision to remain in the Labour Party despite the party’s prolonged internal disputes and legal battles.
According to him, the major disagreements within the party have been resolved, making it unnecessary for him to leave.
“You don’t relocate from your house because armed robbers came,” he said, explaining that remaining in the party allowed him to contribute to resolving its problems.
He also pointed to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s publication of the party’s candidates, arguing that further litigation over the party’s internal disputes would have limited practical significance.
Otti further discussed former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi’s decision to leave the party.
He said Obi had met with him before his departure and that he advised him that he intended to remain in the Labour Party.
“He came and met with me, and I told him that for me, I was staying back. But he said he was leaving,” Otti said.
The governor said he subsequently observed developments surrounding Obi’s political movement but maintained that Obi was entitled to make his own decisions.
Responding to Obi’s suggestion that the Labour Party’s internal problems might not have been resolved had he remained, Otti said the reconciliation process was already underway before Obi’s departure.
“The process of resolution was already on. So for me, I could see that resolution,” he said.
Otti’s comments are consistent with his earlier public position that the Labour Party would field its own presidential candidate for the 2027 election, while he has also said he is not opposed to Tinubu exercising his constitutional right to seek re-election.
In June 2026, the Labour Party’s National Executive Council was reported to have ratified Chibuzo Okereke as its presidential candidate for the 2027 election.
