Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has distanced himself from the claim by Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, that all five South-East governors had resolved to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027, saying the Imo governor could not speak for every governor in the region.
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Otti spoke on Thursday during his monthly media briefing in Umuahia, Abia State, while responding to Uzodimma’s statement that the South-East governors had reviewed their options and agreed to work with Tinubu because of his administration’s projects and policies in the region.
Uzodimma, who chairs the South-East Governors’ Forum, had reportedly made the statement during a meeting with the Imo State Elders Council and traditional rulers in Owerri, where he said Tinubu had shown “unprecedented commitment” to the development of the South-East under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
“The South-East has decided. Our people judge governments by performance and not by political sentiments. The evidence is on the ground,” Uzodimma was quoted as saying.
“We, the five governors of the South-East, have reviewed all options and decided that we will work with President Bola Tinubu because we want to be part of the Project Nigeria,” he added.
Reacting, Otti said Uzodimma had the right to express his personal view as a governor and as an individual, but insisted that such a position could not be taken as the collective decision of all governors in the region.
“If he said that, it is his right to say it as a governor and as an individual, but he can’t speak for everybody. I’m sure that at the appropriate time, people will take their decision,” Otti said.
The Abia governor said it was still too early to make sweeping declarations about the 2027 presidential election, stressing that the final decision would be made by Nigerians through the ballot.
“I think it’s still early days,” he said.
Otti also clarified that he was not opposed to Tinubu seeking a second term, noting that the President has a constitutional right to contest, just as other qualified Nigerians also have the right to run.
“Am I against the President running for a second term? Absolutely no. He has a right to run for a second term, and others who also want to run have a right to run,” he said.
“At the end of the day, it’s the ballot box, you and I, that will determine what happens,” he added.
The Labour Party governor further stated that his party would field its own presidential and vice-presidential candidates in 2027, and that party members would naturally support their candidates.
“My party is Labour Party. And Labour Party has its own presidential and vice-presidential candidate. To the extent that we have candidates, we support them,” Otti said.
He, however, added that supporting his party’s candidates did not mean quarrelling with others who choose to contest or support different candidates.
“But that doesn’t mean we would go and pick quarrel with everybody,” he said.
Otti also reiterated his support for some of the Federal Government’s economic policies, including the removal of petrol subsidy, saying his position on subsidy removal predated his election as governor.
According to him, he had consistently argued that subsidising consumption was not sustainable and that fuel subsidy encouraged corruption.
“Subsidising consumption is not the way to go,” he said.
Uzodimma had cited ongoing federal infrastructure interventions in the region, including roads, rail development and the establishment of the South East Development Commission, as reasons for supporting Tinubu’s re-election.
The South-East governors are drawn from different political parties, a factor that has made Uzodimma’s claim politically significant. Uzodimma of Imo and Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi are members of the All Progressives Congress, Otti belongs to the Labour Party, while Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra is of the All Progressives Grand Alliance. Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, has also been named in reports around the regional alignment discussion.
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