Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has officially announced that he will contest the 2027 presidential election.
He made this known during an interactive session with his supporters on X (formerly Twitter), saying he is prepared to serve only one term if elected.
Obi denied reports that he had formed a political alliance with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, stating that while he is open to coalition talks, they must focus on solving real problems facing the country.
He stated that he would only support coalitions aimed at ending violence in states like Benue and Zamfara, reviving the economy, boosting industrial productivity, and ensuring food security.
He promised to bring stability to Nigeria within his first two years in office if elected.
According to him, leaders need to remain within the country and work together to fix it.
He also commented on the internal crisis in the Labour Party, stating that he and other party leaders are pushing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise the Nenadi Usman-led faction of the party based on a Supreme Court ruling.
Obi spoke further on his belief in rotating the presidency between the North and South and said he practised this principle when he was governor of Anambra State.
Speaking on President Bola Tinubu’s trip to St Lucia, he criticised the president for not spending nights in other Nigerian states since taking office, yet planning to stay eight nights in the small Caribbean country, which he compared to the size of Ilorin.
Looking ahead to 2027, Obi assured Nigerians that he would take a peaceful but firm approach, ensuring electoral integrity before results are announced.
He listed his top priorities as security, education, and poverty eradication.
He pledged to cut government spending, fight corruption, and ensure that no member of his family would be involved in misusing public funds.
He promised that under his leadership, political defection would be discouraged, and strong opposition would be encouraged to uphold democracy.
He expressed frustration over the focus of current leaders on trivial matters while citizens face insecurity and poverty, and reaffirmed that his past governance record in Anambra speaks for itself.
Obi concluded that only countries with stable governments are taken seriously abroad, and Nigeria must work towards that stability.
