Abia State Governor Alex Otti has said the Labour Party (LP) will end the ambition of Abia North Senator Orji Uzor Kalu to win a re-election to the Red Chamber in 2027.
Otti was reacting to a statement credited to Kalu during his vivit to Ebonyi State, where he promised to ensure that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) record a landslide victory in the 2027 general election.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, the governor said he did not need Kalu’s support to be re-elected in 2027.
The statement said: “Ordinarily, we wouldn’t have bothered to respond to Senator Kalu over whom he chooses to work with or for, since it’s within his constitutional and democratic rights, but because he drew the name of Governor Alex Otti into it once again, we thought it appropriate to respond and put the records straight.
“First, Governor Otti has never gone to Senator Kalu to appeal to him to support his re-election bid; neither has he ever made any attempt to convince him to work against his party, the APC, or their would-be governorship candidate in 2027.”
“Senator Kalu’s penchant for consistent emphasis on not supporting Otti against his party and would-be candidate, has, to say the least, become pedestrian and ludicrous.
“If Senator Kalu’s repeated statements are geared towards issuing subtle threats to Governor Otti, then he is committing a calamitous blunder of costly consequences, because threats toughen rather than frighten or weaken Governor Otti.
“Again, those who genuinely want to support their party and candidates do not make unnecessary noise about it, rather they show it through hard work and sincere dedication.
“At this point, we challenge Senator Kalu to produce his unit and ward results in the last governorship and presidential elections.
“The results from INEC show clearly that the APC lost woefully both in the governorship and presidential elections at the polling units and wards of all the APC candidates in the 2023 election in Bende Local Government Area where Senator Kalu hails from.
“The question is: if he truly worked for the President and his party, why did the President lose in his constituency while he won in the election conducted on the same day?
“Again, if Governor Otti could convince the people to so unanimously vote for him and the LP in the last election when they supported him merely on the strength of his character, capacity to serve, excellent antecedents and sound campaign manifesto, which were just promises and which saw him emerge the only LP governor in the country, how does Senator Kalu think that the people would not support and vote massively for Governor Otti and any other candidate or party he directs them to vote for, having seen the enduring transformation he has brought to the state in less than three years as governor?
“It would be strange if Senator Kalu has yet to realise that Abia people see Governor Otti as their best political party, and his re-election as a divine project that must be executed with courage, passion and precision.
“Finally, we congratulate Senator Kalu for drafting his younger brother into the 2027 governorship race. We need to remind him that this same brother of his was in the race for the 2023 governorship election as the flag bearer of APP where he placed last at the end of polls.
“It must also be noted that at the moment, four capable and formidable senatorial aspirants have indicated their intention to run for the Abia North seat under the Labour Party and whoever amongst them wins the primaries will receive massive support from the governor to win the elections come 2027.”
We'll make sure Senator Orji Kalu never returns to the Senate