POLITICS
ABIA STATE GOVT RESPONDS TO SENATOR KALU’S 2027 APC CLAIM, EXPRESSES CONFIDENCE IN GOV. ALEX OTTI’S RE-ELECTION
The Abia State Government has reacted strongly to recent political statements credited to the Senator representing Abia North Senatorial District, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, in which he expressed confidence that Abia State would become an All Progressives Congress (APC) state in the 2027 general elections.
In a press release issued on Monday by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Ferdinand Ekeoma, the state government said it took note of Senator Kalu’s declaration and his repeated references to Governor Alex Otti while outlining his political plans for 2027.
According to the statement, the Abia State Government would ordinarily have ignored the senator’s political preferences, describing them as his constitutional right.
However, it said it was compelled to respond because Governor Otti’s name was again brought into the discussion.
The government clarified that Governor Otti has never approached Senator Kalu to seek support for his re-election bid, nor has he attempted to persuade him to act against the APC or any of its prospective governorship candidates. It described the senator’s repeated emphasis on not supporting Governor Otti as unnecessary and increasingly unproductive.
The statement further noted that any attempt to frame such comments as subtle threats against the governor would amount to a serious miscalculation, stressing that intimidation does not weaken Governor Otti but rather reinforces his resolve.
Questioning the senator’s claims of working for his party’s success, the government challenged him to present polling unit and ward-level results from previous elections. It referenced official results from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which it said showed that the APC performed poorly in both the governorship and presidential elections in Bende Local Government Area during the 2023 polls, despite Senator Kalu’s re-election to the Senate on the same day.
The Abia State Government argued that Governor Otti’s electoral victory in 2023 was achieved largely on the strength of his personal credibility, capacity, and campaign vision, even before assuming office. It maintained that having witnessed what it described as significant and enduring transformation across the state in less than three years, Abians are even more inclined to support Governor Otti and any candidates he endorses in future elections.
The statement emphasized that many residents of the state now see Governor Otti not just as a party leader, but as a unifying political force whose re-election is widely viewed as inevitable.
The government also commented on emerging political alignments ahead of 2027, noting Senator Kalu’s support for his younger brother’s governorship ambition. It recalled that the same individual contested the 2023 governorship election under the Action Peoples Party (APP) and finished last. In contrast, the government disclosed that several strong aspirants have already declared interest in contesting the Abia North senatorial seat under the Labour Party, with assurances that whoever emerges from the party’s primaries would enjoy the governor’s backing.
The statement concluded by reaffirming the Abia State Government’s confidence in Governor Otti’s leadership and its belief that the electorate will again reward performance, credibility, and vision at the polls in 2027.