Julius Abure, the immediate past national chairman of the Labour Party, has declared he is prepared to back either President Bola Tinubu or former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar in the 2027 presidential election, but has firmly ruled out supporting Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
Abure told The Punch in an interview that his final decision would depend on three factors: the outcome of a pending Supreme Court case over the Labour Party's leadership, the alignment of any potential partner's agenda with his interests and ideology, and whether the candidate is broadly acceptable to voters.
Conditions for backing a candidate
Abure said if the Supreme Court did not deliver its ruling before the end of November, he would move to consult his supporters and weigh up offers from interested camps. He stressed that the NDC was not among the parties he would consider, given Obi's presence on its ticket.
"Yes, obviously the NDC is not included. I don't see any reason to support Peter Obi again. I will not. And I am saying this with conviction and without any fear of contradiction," he said.
He argued that Obi had squandered the goodwill, structures, and campaign machinery that delivered him more than six million votes in the 2023 presidential election, and predicted the former Anambra State governor would perform worse in 2027.
"Obi will not record the successes he recorded in the 2023 general election. That is because he has squandered his goodwill, human capital, resources, and mismanaged all the gains he had in 2023," Abure said.
Labour Party crisis and Obi's NDC move
The bad blood between Abure and Obi stems from a prolonged leadership dispute within the Labour Party, centred on disagreements over the conduct of the party's national convention and control of its structure. Abure accused Obi and Abia State Governor Alex Otti of dismantling the party's organisation from the ward level up to the national level, and of imposing what he called an "illegal leadership" through a parallel National Working Committee in Owerri.
Allies of Obi, however, maintained that Abure had broken an earlier agreement to run an inclusive convention starting at the ward and state levels before holding a national gathering.
Abure also questioned whether Obi's experience in the Labour Party revealed anything about his capacity to lead the country. "If you can't lead a micro, there is no way you can lead a macro," he said.
On the NDC, Abure suggested Obi would find conditions there far less accommodating than those he enjoyed in the Labour Party, pointing to Senator Seriake Dickson's firm grip on the party's leadership.
Reactions and outlook
The NDC and Obi's camp dismissed Abure's comments, saying they had moved on and remained focused on the 2027 presidential contest.
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Primate Elijah Ayodele warned that President Tinubu's re-election in 2027 is far from guaranteed, adding that the ruling APC is dangerously confident heading into a contest it may not win. Primate Ayodele told Legit.ng that many people would be left in shock if the president fails to secure a second term.
