Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi toldd reporters in Abuja on Wednesday that no amount of defection by state governors in the South East will guarantee the political capture of the region.
Obi said this on the sidelines of a campaign alongside the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Chairmanship candidate for Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), in the February 2026 FCT Council elections, Dr Moses Paul, on a visit to LEA Nursery/Primary School, Kapwa, a suburb of Abuja, said education is the bedrock of any society.
He was responding to question about the latest defections by Enugu State Governor Peter Mba and his Bayelsa counterpart, Duoye Diri, both of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
This was contained in a statement released by Obi’s media team, in Abuja, on Wednesday.
According to the former Anambra governor, Nigeria is a democracy and not under military rule, where states can be “captured.”
He said the people will ultimately decide where to go, not governors or Senators, stressing that no party will capture or win any state just because it has a governor.
On the defection of the Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, and APC’s alleged move to capture the South-East for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election, Obi said, “Peter Mbah is a good friend of mine. And I believe that as governor, he must have taken his decision based on his own political views and calculations.
“As for the alleged plot to capture the South-East, we are not in a military time when you capture people. You are a leader. You tend to do the right things for them to follow you. So I don’t think anybody is capturing anywhere.
“The government needs to do more if it wants the people to support it.”
Speaking on the planned protest for the release of Nnamdi Kanu by political activist Omoyele Sowore, the Obi said, “I’ve always been consistent on Nnamdi Kanu’s situation.
“There was no need for his arrest in the first place. And I’ve always said that for me, I will consult, negotiate and discuss with anybody who is agitating. I said it clearly and I remain there.
“I thank those who are actually trying to do or say what we’ve been saying for a long time. Go and check what I’ve said before 2020, 2022 and even 2024.
“And now that it has gone to court, the rules should be followed. Not just for Nnamdi Kanu, but for all agitators across the nation. Let’s dialogue with them.
“There’s nothing wrong with anybody agitating or saying let’s dialogue with them. And whatever we do with them, let’s follow the rules. So I thank the organisers and those who are involved.”
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