The Abia State Government has cast doubt on Senator Orji Uzor Kalu’s loyalty to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, citing the 2023 elections where Kalu retained his senatorial seat but reportedly failed to deliver his constituency for the APC presidential candidate.
Following Kalu’s claims that the APC would reclaim Abia State in 2027 and remove Governor Alex Otti, the state administration responded through Ferdinand Ekeoma, the governor’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity. The statement challenged Kalu to provide verifiable evidence of his influence on the electorate.
Representing Abia North Senatorial District, Kalu had promised to campaign for Tinubu’s success in the state while insisting that his personal friendship with Governor Otti would not affect his political allegiance. However, the government pointed out that the APC suffered significant defeats in Kalu’s constituency during both the presidential and governorship elections of 2023.
The administration emphasized that Governor Otti neither solicited Kalu’s backing for his election nor attempted to pressure him politically. The statement warned that any perceived indirect threats from Kalu would likely backfire, strengthening rather than weakening the governor’s position.
Raising further questions, the government urged Kalu to make public the polling unit and ward-level results if he truly mobilised support for Tinubu. Officials highlighted the contradiction of how Tinubu lost in Kalu’s constituency while Kalu himself won his senatorial seat on the same day.
Governor Otti’s administration credited his 2023 victory to his credibility, competence, and campaign strategy, noting he is the only Labour Party governor in Nigeria. Confidence remains high that Abia residents will continue to support him in the 2027 election.
The statement also addressed the political ambitions of the Kalu family, highlighting that Kalu’s younger brother, Mascot Kalu, ran under the Action Peoples Party (APP) in 2023 and finished last with only 11,728 votes, representing 3.3 percent of the total. The government sarcastically congratulated Senator Kalu for allegedly “positioning” his brother for the 2027 contest.
Finally, the statement noted that four candidates have already expressed interest in the Abia North senatorial seat under the Labour Party, and the governor’s office has pledged full support to whichever aspirant emerges. For context, during the March 18, 2023 governorship election, Alex Otti polled 175,466 votes, defeating PDP candidate Okey Ahiwe, who received 88,526 votes.
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