Political economist Prof. Pat Utomi has said that former Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi, will contest the presidency in 2027, stressing that he would withdraw his support if Obi accepts a vice-presidential ticket.
Utomi made the remarks on Thursday evening during an interview on Politics Today, a programme on Channels Television.
His comments followed Obi’s formal defection from the Labour Party to the African Democratic Congress (ADC), which the former Anambra State governor announced on Wednesday in Enugu.
Speaking at the event, Obi who finished third in the 2023 presidential election with about six million votes, described his move to the ADC as the start of a mission to “rescue our country and set it on the path of proper socio-economic development.”
The defection has, however, generated mixed reactions from supporters and critics alike. Among those who have raised concerns is the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, who questioned the implications of the move for the zoning of the party’s presidential ticket, particularly given the presence of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in the ADC.
Addressing the speculation on the programme, Utomi firmly ruled out the possibility of Obi running as 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.
Utomi also called for the introduction of age limits for presidential candidates, proposing a cap of 70 years. He argued that many aspirants now view the presidency as a “retirement home,” while sharply criticising the administrations of former President Muhammadu Buhari and incumbent 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. That is not acceptable,” he said.
“They don’t have the fitness to run the country. The last one, and the current one, have essentially been governments in absentia.”
Utomi concluded by saying he would actively campaign for constitutional or legal reforms to bar anyone above the age of 70 from contesting executive offices, including the presidency and governorships.
