By Omoyeni Ojeifo
Abia Governor Alex Otti says he will not oppose President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid, while maintaining that he has his own presidential candidate in the Labour Party.
Otti spoke in an interview with ARISE News monitored by PerSecondNews on Friday, where he clarified his position amid questions over his relationship with the Tinubu administration.
According to him, his position was shaped by his responsibilities as governor and member of the National Economic Council.
“I’m not in a position to oppose his candidacy, and sometimes people don’t understand. If you call it a comfortable position, why not? Comfortable positions are supposed to be just like you are sitting there comfortably,” he said.
The governor maintained that he has his own presidential candidate while acknowledging Tinubu’s position as Nigeria’s president.
“I have my own presidential candidate. At the moment, I have a presidential candidate, and it’s expected that I will support my president,”he noted.
Otti distinguished between working with Tinubu as president and choosing a candidate for the 2027 presidential election.
“I have to support the president as the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Whether I’m supporting him or I’m not supporting him is not even an issue,”he stressed
He also acknowledged Tinubu’s right to seek another term in office, regardless of political affiliations.
“He has the right to run, and nobody can stop him from running. Whether I’m supporting him or I’m not supporting him is not even the issue,” Otti emphasized.
Asked directly who he would support between Tinubu and Peter Obi, Otti declined to disclose his personal voting preference.
“I would not be speaking about who I will vote for here with you. That is something I have reserved the right to keep to myself.”
The governor also maintained that political candidates would be allowed to campaign freely in Abia during the 2027 elections.
“Anybody that wants to campaign in my state will be allowed to campaign. If any other person, even Atiku, wants to campaign, he will be allowed to campaign,”he added.
Otti specifically mentioned Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar while defending the right of opposition candidates to campaign in the state.
“That is what democracy is about. Even if you want to campaign from tomorrow, we’ll give you.”
Otti’s position comes amid renewed political activity ahead of the 2027 general elections and questions over the political alignments surrounding the presidential contest.