Abia State Governor Alex Otti has dismissed claims by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma that all South-East governors have agreed to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027.
Speaking during his monthly media chat on Thursday, Otti said Uzodimma was entitled to express his personal views but could not speak on behalf of every governor in the region.
“If he said that, it is his right to say so as a governor and as an individual, but he cannot speak for everybody. At the appropriate time, people will make their decision,” Otti said.
The Labour Party governor also reaffirmed his loyalty to his party, stating that the party would field its own presidential and vice-presidential candidates for the 2027 general election.
“My party is the Labour Party, and the Labour Party will have its own presidential and vice-presidential candidates. As long as we have candidates, we will support them,” he said.
Otti, however, stressed that he had no objection to President Tinubu seeking a second term, noting that the Constitution gives him the right to contest.
“I am not against the President running for a second term. He has every constitutional right to do so, just as others who wish to contest also have the same right,” he added.
He said the outcome of the election would ultimately be decided by Nigerians through the ballot box, describing the electoral process as the foundation of democracy.
The governor also reiterated his support for some of the Federal Government’s economic reforms, including the removal of petrol subsidy. He argued that fuel subsidy encourages corruption and maintained that subsidising consumption was not a sustainable economic policy.
Uzodimma, who chairs the South-East Governors’ Forum, recently stated that the region’s five governors had agreed to back Tinubu’s second-term bid, citing ongoing federal projects such as road construction, railway development and the South East Development Commission as reasons for their support.
The South-East governors belong to different political parties. Uzodimma of Imo and Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi are members of the All Progressives Congress, Peter Mbah of Enugu belongs to the Peoples Democratic Party, Alex Otti is a member of the Labour Party, while Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo is of the All Progressives Grand Alliance.
