Otti opens Labour Party's 2027 campaign in Abia with warning against attacking rivals

Governor Alex Otti of Abia State on Sunday kicked off the Labour Party's campaign for the 2027 elections in Umuahia, telling his own supporters to leave opposition parties alone.

Speaking at the Umuahia township stadium, Otti said rival parties should be able to book public venues, including the stadium, as long as they follow the rules and pay the fees.

He said he had already made this position public and was restating it at the flag-off. According to him, security agents have been told to arrest anyone who blocks a political group from holding a lawful event, even if that person belongs to the Labour Party.

"You do not have my mandate to attack people or to stop people from campaigning," Otti said.

No demolition for politics

The governor also addressed a grievance from the past. He said a fence belonging to one of his supporters was pulled down under the previous administration, and he promised that his government would not treat opponents the same way.

"Never again will anybody's fence be demolished for being in the opposition," he said, according to Daily Post.

He congratulated the people running against him in 2027, saying democracy works best when voters in Abia have real choices.

Otti asked party members to take the message to their communities and to argue their case on issues rather than insults. He said Abia has moved past the stage where paying salaries and pensions, building roads or cleaning up towns counted as achievements, and that candidates who cannot speak to bigger development questions will find it hard to win over informed voters.

He pointed to the state's showing in governance rankings, including the Citizen Satisfaction Index and the State Performance Index and Fiscal Performance Ranking, as evidence that his administration is on track.

He also thanked residents for the large turnout and told supporters the campaign belongs to them. "Knock on every door," he urged them, asking them to invite people to join a journey he said began 12 years ago.

Speaker eyes Assembly majority

The Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly, Emmanuel Emeruwa, also spoke at the event. He said the next Assembly should be dominated by the Labour Party so that no impeachment plot against the governor can succeed.

What happens next: the Labour Party and its rivals now have roughly a year of campaigning before the 2027 general elections, with Abia's public facilities and the conduct of supporters likely to stay in the spotlight.