Political economist, Prof. Pat Utomi, has confirmed that the 2023Labour Party presidential candidat, Peter Obi, will contest for the presidency in 2027, stating, however, that he would withdraw his support if Obi accepts to run as vice president.
Utomi made the comment on Thursday evening during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme.
Recall that Obi announced his formal defection from the Labour Party to the African Democratic Congress in Enugu on Wednesday.
At the event, the former presidential candidate, who placed third in the 2023 general elections, garnering six million votes, said his move to the ADC marked the beginning of a journey to “rescue our country and set it on the path of proper socio-economic development.”
However, some supporters and critics, including the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, have questioned the move, raising concerns about the zoning of the party’s presidential candidacy, particularly with the membership of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in the same party.
Speaking on the programme, Utomi ruled out a vice-presidential slot for Obi, stating that he would “walk away” if the former Anambra State governor became a vice-presidential candidate. “I can tell you that Peter Obi will contest for the presidency. The day he becomes somebody’s vice president, I walk away from his corner. I can tell you that for a fact,” he said.
He further argued that age limits should be set for presidential candidates, capped at 70, stating that many candidates considered the office of the president as a “retirement home”, criticising both the governments of late President Muhammadu Buhari and President Bola Tinubu.
“Something important about this election to bear in mind is that the Nigerian presidency has become a retirement home where people go for the Nigerian state to pay their medical bills. It is not acceptable.
“They don’t have the fitness to run the country. The last one, and the current one, have essentially been government-in-absentia leaders.
“I, Pat Utomi, am insisting that I will canvass to the Nigerian people that nobody over the age of 70 should run for an executive position, whether it be governor or president,” he concluded.
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