Actor-turned-politician and former spokesperson of the Labour Party presidential campaign, Kenneth Okonkwo, has withdrawn his support for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar following reports that former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has been picked as the vice-presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress for the 2027 presidential election.
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Okonkwo made his position known in a statement posted on his X account on Monday, shortly after reports emerged that Amaechi, who hails from the South-South, had been selected as Atiku’s running mate.
He described the development as unfortunate, arguing that it would further deepen what he called the long-standing political marginalisation of the South-East in Nigeria’s power-sharing arrangement.
“I heard from the social media that ADC has picked its vice presidential candidate from the South-South. If this is true, it is unfortunate, as this will continue the crude marginalisation of the South-East,” he wrote.
Okonkwo said the South-East had not produced either President or Vice President since the return of democratic rule in 1999, insisting that excluding the zone from both positions in 2027 would amount to perpetuating injustice against the region.
“This Geo-Political Zone has neither produced a President or Vice President since 1999. To deny the South-East the opportunity to produce the President or Vice President in ADC in 2027 will amount to perpetuating the marginalisation,” he stated.
He also recalled that the ADC was founded in 2005 by Ralphs Nwosu, who is from the South-East, and said the sacrifices made by South-East political leaders in the coalition should not result in the exclusion of the region from top political offices.
“The ADC was founded by Ralphs Nwosu from the South-East in 2005. He made the sacrifice to give up the party in 2025 for the coalition to usher in a better Nigeria. He couldn’t have made that sacrifice to marginalise his own people,” Okonkwo said.
According to him, his participation in politics has always been driven by fairness, equity and inclusion, not by any arrangement that would worsen the political exclusion of his region.
“I did not join politics to assist in the further marginalisation of my own people. I am of the opinion that if we made a sacrifice to give up the National Chairman and the President, it will amount to unpardonable injustice to deny us the Vice President in 2027,” he added.
Okonkwo further said he had previously urged Atiku, who he claimed had presented himself as a pathway to the South-East presidency, to demonstrate that commitment by choosing a running mate from the region.
“The only favour I asked Atiku Abubakar, who openly declared that he is the pathway to the presidency of the South-East, is to show it by choosing someone from the South-East to be his Vice,” he stated.
He concluded that he would not campaign for any presidential ticket that does not have a South-East person either as presidential candidate or vice-presidential candidate in 2027.
“If it is confirmed that he has chosen a candidate from the South-South, I wish him well. I am not favourably disposed to campaigning for any presidential ticket that does not have a person of South-East origin as President or Vice in 2027,” Okonkwo said.
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