A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Kenneth Okonkwo, has said that votes cast for former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi in the next presidential election would ultimately favour President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.
Speaking during an interview, the former Labour Party spokesman argued that opposition parties must unite under a single platform if they hope to unseat the incumbent president.
Okonkwo said political observers had repeatedly warned that a fragmented opposition would strengthen Tinubu’s chances of securing a second term in office.
“The reason I said it is that either you’re working for Tinubu directly, in other words, you’re in APC, or you’re working for Tinubu indirectly because when you divide the votes of the coalition and the opposition, you’re still making Tinubu better placed to win,” he said.
He criticised Obi’s reported withdrawal from coalition discussions within the ADC, alleging that the former Anambra State governor was unwilling to participate in a competitive primary election process.
“Nobody forced Peter Obi to enter ADC. He entered on his own, and one week to the end of the closure of the time, he left and gave the reason,” Okonkwo said.
“You can’t compete in a primary, and you want to be a politician. You want to be the president of a challenged country, and you’re running away from challenge.”
Okonkwo also claimed that Anambra South Senator Victor Umeh had previously advocated for a political alliance between the South-East and northern political leaders as the region’s best path to producing a president.
According to him, Umeh told him that Peter Obi’s strongest opportunity would be to participate in such an arrangement, potentially as a vice-presidential candidate.
“When we were all entering ADC, Victor Umeh made it clear and spoke to me directly that the only chance the Igbo people have is to align with the North and for our brother Peter Obi to be a vice president,” Okonkwo alleged.
He further claimed that Umeh had expressed frustration over Obi’s reluctance to accept such political advice.
“I told him, ‘Have you told Obi?’ He said yes, but that Peter Obi is very stubborn. That if you tell him anything, he would not believe but would continue to try,” Okonkwo said.
The ADC chieftain urged opposition supporters to carefully weigh the consequences of their electoral choices ahead of the next general election.
“Let me tell you the truth, next year, anybody voting any vote whatsoever to Peter Obi, you’re voting for Tinubu, and don’t say that I didn’t tell you,” he stated.
