₦airaland Forum

A former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has officially confirmed he will be running again during the 2027 elections.

Obi revealed this while speaking during a X Spaces on Sunday night.

The ex-governor of Anambra State, however, insisted he will not be a running mate to anybody.


According to Obi, he has not garnered all the experience he has, only to end up as a vice-president.

“I am not travelling round the world to learn governance to be Vice president,” Obi said.


““I know how to turn Nigeria around. I built my business from scratch and have more experience than any candidate, including the sitting President.

“Peter Obi will be on the ballot in 2027. I need your support. I need your prayers.”

helinues:
May be Atiku as a political heavyweight but you see Peter Obi, he is a featherweight politician in Nigeria.

Currently, his strength is only in his region. Other regions that might be sympathetic, his supporters have abused all of them

helinues:
Obi joining ADC won't make any different because he would likely be vicing Atiku in 2027. Him doing that, he should forget about SW, SS and NC votes

Mrfixitt:
The right thing is for Atiku to support Peter Obi and wait for the turn of the north. If that is done, Tinubu will be booted out of power in the next election

A former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, is set to formally join the African Democratic Congress amid ongoing consultations ahead of the 2027 general elections.

A principal official of the party in Abuja told Sunday PUNCH that Obi had concluded plans to join the party and hold a declaration rally in Enugu, the political capital of the South-East, on December 31.

According to the official, Obi’s supporters and loyalists have begun arrangements for the defection.

The source disclosed that Obi, after the ADC asked him to make up his mind on joining the party about three weeks ago, met with the National Chairman of the party, David Mark, to renew his allegiance to the coalition.

He said the party’s position might have convinced the former Anambra State governor to finally decide to join the ADC.

On December 7, the ADC, while reacting to a statement credited to Obi in which he described the party as unstable, told the presidential hopeful to make up his mind on whether or not to join the coalition.

Speaking with Sunday PUNCH, the party source said, “We are aware that Peter Obi is making plans to declare for the ADC on December 31 in Enugu. Although he has yet to formally inform the party, the plans are genuine.”

Asked why Obi would prefer to declare for the coalition in Enugu instead of Anambra, his home state, the party official said, “Enugu is the political capital of the South-East. Obi is representing the region, not just his state. That must have informed his decision.”

But the ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said he could not confirm Obi’s planned defection.

“The point is that there is no official announcement yet. But consultations are ongoing,” he said.

Similarly, the National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, Dr Yunusa Tanko, declined to comment directly on the matter, insisting that only Obi could speak on it.

But the Julius Abure-led National Working Committee of the Labour Party has downplayed Obi’s planned defection.

The National Publicity Secretary of the LP, Obiora Ifoh, in an interview with Sunday PUNCH, said the party would refrain from making any definitive pronouncement on the matter until Obi personally speaks on it.

He said, “We cannot fully comment on that until we hear from Obi. As we normally say, anybody can defect from anywhere to anywhere. It is normal in Nigerian politics. Labour Party doesn’t see it as a big deal.”

According to Ifoh, any decision by Obi to leave the party would be driven by personal ambition rather than institutional failure, adding that the Labour Party would continue to thrive regardless.

While reiterating that the party harboured no ill feelings, the LP spokesman said it would have been preferable for Obi to remain within the fold and work through any disagreements internally.

He said, “But the wisest thing for him to do is to stay back and work with the party that gave him the spread he got in 2023. He should try to reconcile with the party leadership and move on from there. But if he prefers to jump from one party to another, we wish him all the best.”

ADC plans convention to pick presidential candidate
Meanwhile, the ADC will hold its national convention mid-2026 as part of broader efforts to reposition the party ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The party spokesman, Abdullahi, who disclosed this to one of our correspondents on Saturday, said the party was currently focused on nationwide mobilisation, membership expansion and internal consolidation.

He said the immediate priority of the party was to build a “solid organisational framework” across the country, stressing that ongoing membership registration would form the foundation for future congresses and conventions.

He explained that 2026 would be a defining year for the party, particularly as preparations for the selection of a presidential candidate would significantly alter the political landscape and energise party activities nationwide.

He said, “Don’t forget that by June or July, at the latest, we must have a presidential candidate. That will also add to the momentum and redraw the political dynamic.

“Once a presidential candidate emerges and you see people also coming up to contest the governorship election, it will change the momentum,” he stated.

According to him, the current pace of political activity within the party should not be mistaken for a lack of preparedness, as election-year dynamics typically trigger heightened engagement.

On whether a specific date had been fixed for the ADC’s national convention, Abdullahi said discussions were ongoing but clarified that the party planned to hold two conventions in 2026.

“We will have the first convention to ratify the decisions that the NEC has taken this year. We will have another one to decide our next presidential candidate. That will come towards the middle of the year. But I cannot give you a definite date for now,” he said.

slivertongue:
Tinubu is a disaster that should be kicked out of power

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has said he regrets supporting President Bola Tinubu during the 2023 presidential election, admitting that the decision did not produce the outcome he had hoped for.

Makinde made the disclosure on Tuesday while speaking with journalists at the Government House in Ibadan.

The Governor was one of five Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors — popularly known as the G5 — who openly worked against their party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in the 2023 polls.

The group, led by then Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, opposed Atiku’s candidacy over zoning concerns, arguing that the PDP should have presented a southern presidential candidate following the eight-year tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari, a northerner.

Makinde said his decision to back Tinubu, who was then the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was based on the belief that he would act in the national interest if elected.

“I said it earlier, I’m human. I supported the current president, even though in another party at that time, because I thought we’ll do what is right for the country,” Makinde said.

He added that he believed the president would “reset the country” and bring together competent individuals from across Nigeria to address the nation’s challenges.

“But unfortunately, that is not what we’re seeing. I regret that action. Yes, I do,” the governor stated.

Citing concerns over the survival of democracy and the future of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the governor vowed that President Tinubu won’t have his support in the coming 2027 presidential election.

Makinde also disclosed the reason behind his political disagreement with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

According to him, the rift between him and Wike began after the minister told Tinubu during a meeting that he would “hold PDP” for the President ahead of the 2027 election, a statement Makinde said was made without the consent of other party stakeholders.

“I was in a meeting with the President and Wike and a few others, and Wike said to the President that I will hold PDP for you against 2027,” Makinde said. “So, we got up, and I asked Wike, did we agree to this?”

Makinde noted that while Wike is entitled to support Tinubu’s re-election bid, other members of the party also have the right to protect the PDP and oppose any move that could weaken democratic pluralism.

LagosOrigin:
N30,000 naira people

LagosOrigin:
You made a drug baron your president and expect trump to take you serious ?

LagosOrigin:
Good

Let everybody remain in Nigeria and let develop our country .