Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has asked the senator representing Abia North Senatorial District, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, to prepare for a crushing defeat ahead of the 2027 general election.
Otti made this known through a statement issued on Monday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Ferdinand Ekeoma, while reacting to comments credited to Kalu, in which the former governor claimed that the All Progressives Congress (APC) would take over Abia State in 2027 and that he would work for APC candidates.
According to the statement, Governor Otti has never approached Senator Kalu to seek his support for re-election, nor has he made any attempt to persuade him to work against the APC or its prospective governorship candidate in 2027.
The statement described Kalu’s repeated emphasis on not supporting Otti against his party as “pedestrian and ludicrous,” insisting that genuine party loyalty does not require constant public proclamation.
Governor Otti further noted that those who truly intend to support their party and candidates usually demonstrate it through hard work and commitment, rather than making unnecessary public noise.
The statement read in part: “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.
“We challenge Senator Orji Uzor Kalu to publicly produce his polling unit and ward results from the last governorship and presidential elections.
“Results released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) clearly show that the All Progressives Congress (APC) suffered overwhelming losses in both the governorship and presidential elections across polling units and wards of all APC candidates during the 2023 elections in Bende Local Government Area, where Senator Kalu hails from.”
The statement also questioned how President Bola Ahmed Tinubu lost in Kalu’s constituency during the 2023 presidential election, despite the senator winning his own election held on the same day, if he indeed worked for the president and the APC.
It further disclosed that four aspirants have already declared interest in contesting the Abia North Senatorial seat on the platform of the Labour Party, adding that whoever emerges from the party’s primaries will enjoy the full backing of Governor Otti to secure victory in the 2027 elections.
