2027: Otti Pledges Backing for Labour Party Challenger Against Kalu

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has declared that the senator representing Abia North, Orji Uzor Kalu, should brace for defeat in the 2027 general elections, vowing to support the Labour Party (LP) candidate that will emerge to challenge him.

The governor’s position was conveyed in a statement issued on Monday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ferdinand Ekeoma, in response to comments attributed to Kalu, who reportedly claimed that the All Progressives Congress (APC) would take over Abia State in 2027 and that he would mobilise support for the party’s candidates.

According to the statement, Governor Otti has never approached Kalu to seek his backing for a second term, nor has he attempted to persuade him to work against the APC or its expected governorship candidate in the next election cycle.

The governor described Kalu’s repeated public declarations about not supporting his administration as unnecessary and increasingly trivial, noting that genuine party loyalty is demonstrated through action rather than constant public pronouncements.

The statement noted that, “If Senator Kalu’s consistent remarks are intended as veiled threats to Governor Otti, then such a move is a grave miscalculation. Threats do not intimidate Governor Otti; they only strengthen his resolve.”

Otti challenged the former governor to make public the results from his polling unit and ward during the 2023 governorship and presidential elections, insisting that official figures released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) showed that the APC suffered significant losses in those contests, including in Bende Local Government Area, Kalu’s home base.

The governor also questioned how President Bola Tinubu reportedly lost in Kalu’s constituency during the presidential election while Kalu himself won his senatorial race held on the same day, if indeed he had delivered support for the APC.

Furthermore, Otti revealed that no fewer than four credible aspirants have already indicated interest in contesting the Abia North senatorial seat on the platform of the Labour Party. He assured that whoever emerges as the party’s candidate will enjoy his full backing to unseat Kalu in the 2027 elections.