Former Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, has said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will present a candidate to challenge Governor Alex Otti in the 2027 election, provided the party is strong enough.

Ikpeazu made the remarks during an interview with Channels Television on the sidelines of the PDP 2026 National Convention held at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja.

Asked to assess the current administration in Abia State, Ikpeazu declined to comment on Otti’s performance, maintaining that former governors traditionally refrain from publicly evaluating their successors.

“I speak like a former governor; we don’t talk about our successors. We talk about them only when they finish,” he said.

Pressed further on whether he had any opinion about the incumbent governor, Ikpeazu shifted focus to party organisation and electoral readiness.

“I’m not concerned about that as of now. I am thinking about how to organise my party and run elections. If my party is strong enough to contest elections, they will field a candidate because he is not from my party,” he said.

The former governor added, “If my party is strong enough by 2027, we will field a candidate against him”.

Explaining his cautious choice of words, Ikpeazu likened his response to a scientific approach, stressing the importance of acknowledging uncertainty.

“I am a teacher, and academics are careful about what they say. Even if you are a scientist, you can only speak within a limit of error because I am not God. So, if I say ‘if’, it means I believe in the God factor. It is not the same thing as saying we are not going to put a candidate,” he explained.

Beyond the 2027 outlook, Ikpeazu disclosed that 2,503 delegates were accredited for the convention.

He also affirmed that reconciliation efforts within the PDP would continue despite internal challenges, noting that the party’s doors remain open to aggrieved members, even as some leaders stayed away.

The ex-governor further outlined conditions under which ongoing litigation at the Supreme Court could be withdrawn, while reiterating his decision not to pass a verdict on the current administration in Abia State.

Governor Otti’s emergence in the 2023 governorship election marked a significant political shift in Abia, ending the PDP’s 24-year hold on power in the state.

Running on the platform of the Labour Party, his victory was upheld by the courts following legal challenges.

The governor has, however, dismissed defection rumours. (Channels)