Kenneth Okonkwo, a former spokesperson for Peter Obi and now a key voice in the emerging opposition coalition, has predicted that President Bola Tinubu will secure re-election in 2027 if the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presents another southern candidate, such as Obi, as its presidential flag bearer.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Tuesday, the actor-turned-politician urged the coalition to back a strong northern candidate with broad regional support to successfully challenge the incumbent.
“My strategy this time around is that I am going to support a northerner in 2027,” Okonkwo declared.
“It must be a northerner that the whole north is willing to support. If the whole north is willing to support an Atiku, why not? If the whole north is willing to support a Tambuwal, why not? The person must be qualified, and if he has experience in the presidency, it is an added advantage, and when he puts up something from the south, that will push him through.”
Okonkwo, who served as one of the most visible spokesmen for Peter Obi during the 2023 presidential race, publicly cut ties with the Labour Party in July 2024. He cited the party’s unresolved internal conflicts and Obi’s inability to address them effectively.
President Tinubu, who won the 2023 election against Obi and Atiku Abubakar, assumed office in May of that year. With his re-election bid expected, Okonkwo said only a strategic move by the opposition—especially presenting a northern candidate—could upend Tinubu’s chances.
“Tinubu has become incurably bad and we want to terminate his incumbency,” he said.
“Anybody telling you it’s injustice if the north comes in, if the south comes in, and whoever wins in a primary election will take it for four years. Where is the injustice? It has happened before.
“Anybody telling you to bring a fresh southerner to compete against Tinubu, a southerner, is trying to tell you to zone the ticket to Tinubu and Tinubu will win outright.”
He warned that fielding a southeastern candidate would be politically unwise, suggesting that Nigeria’s electoral establishment is not ready to let someone from the region win, even if they do so fairly.
“If you bring somebody from the Southeast, even if he wins, they will steal it from him.
“Let me tell you the strategy that will make the Southeast man to be president. Do you know the South-West has never contested an election against an incumbent? Strategy? Because they know that in Nigeria, if you don’t have the establishment supporting you, even if you win, they will steal it from you.
“Peter Obi won the election in 2023, and they stole it from us. If you do it again, they will steal it from him because there is no incumbent to back you, but if you bring somebody from the north, nobody will prevail on him to leave his victory because he is not from the same side as you,” Okonkwo said.
