Fresh divisions have opened within the Labour Party after South-West National Vice Chairman Abayomi Arabambi claimed that key party figures, including Abia State Governor Alex Otti and factional national chairman Julius Abure, had agreed in principle to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.
Arabambi made the remarks during an interview on News Central on Thursday, saying the presidency should remain in the South-West for a full eight-year cycle. According to reports of the interview, he said: “Abure and Governor Alex Otti have all agreed in principle that we will support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu because this presidency belongs to the South-West, not to the South.” He also said Peter Obi could not return to the party and alleged that former finance minister Nenadi Usman was pushing that effort because Obi may not secure the presidential ticket of the coalition-backed African Democratic Congress.
But the claim was swiftly rejected by another Labour Party bloc, deepening the leadership crisis that has dogged the party since the 2023 elections. In a statement reported by Punch and Nigerian Tribune, Sokoto State chairman and chairman of the Northern Labour Party Chairmen Forum, Abubakar Yawale, said the party had not endorsed Tinubu for a second term and described Arabambi’s comments as false and misleading. He also said Arabambi had been expelled and lacked authority to speak for the party.
“The Labour Party has not taken any decision to support President Tinubu’s second-term ambition. Such a claim is false, unfounded, and should be completely disregarded,” the statement said.
The latest dispute underscores the party’s continuing fragmentation, with rival camps making conflicting claims over its leadership, direction and possible alliances ahead of the 2027 election. Arabambi is aligned with the Julius Abure faction, while Nenadi Usman and other party figures have challenged that structure in the wake of prolonged internal disputes.
There was no immediate public response traced from Otti himself to Arabambi’s specific claim. That leaves unresolved one of the most politically sensitive parts of the controversy: whether the Abia governor, widely seen as one of the party’s most influential elected officials, actually supports Tinubu’s re-election or is being drawn into a factional power struggle. Based on current reporting, the endorsement exists as Arabambi’s claim, not as an established Labour Party position.
