The leadership of the Labour Party (LP) has said that its presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, is confused about his intentions ahead of the 2027 polls.

The National Chairman of the party, Julius Abure, in a statement on Monday signed by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Obiorah Ifoh, said the report of the party ‘celebrating’ Obi’s declaration to run on the platform of the party in 2027 was untrue.

Daily Trust reports that Obi might have foreclosed his participation in the coalition that would challenge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC), by declaring to his supporters that he would contest the 2027 general elections on the LP’s platform.

He said this while speaking to a group of young supporters in a video circulating on the party’s WhatsApp platform on Saturday.

Responding to a question on which platform he intended to contest the 2027 elections, Obi said, “I will still continue to run in the Labour Party. I’m a member of the Labour Party.”

However, the party said that the impression conveyed by the news on celebrating Obi’s declaration was erroneous, inaccurate and did not in any way reflect the position and mood in the party.

“First, while we are not opposed to anybody running under the platform of the Labour Party in the 2027 general elections, we need to make it categorically clear that the party has a long standing rule on how its candidates shall emerge and automatic ticket is not one of the routes.

“Recall that at the party’s National Convention in 2024, the party had erroneously granted automatic tickets to our former presidential candidate and the only governor of the party. However, that decision has since been rescinded and reversed after consulting the statute books.

“Second, His Excellency, Peter Obi, hours after he spoke of his intention to run under the Labour Party, was on Sunday seen in a meeting of a pro-coalition group in Abuja without the permission and consent of the Labour Party leadership.

“This to us is really confusing and we think that Peter Obi has not come to terms with his intentions for the 2027 presidential race,” Ifoh said.

He said the party had consistently said that Labour Party would not go into any coalition or merger of any sort ahead of 2027 general elections, noting that Obi’s continued association with the coalition was not only distasteful but unacceptable to the party.

He said, “It is also an affront to the party leadership and we view his position as a total disregard to the party’s right to make decision bidding its affairs.

“We are therefore by this statement letting Nigerians know that the presidency for 2027 is open to anyone who wants to run under the platform of the party,” he added. (Daily Trust)