Abuja - The Labour Party has issued a blunt rejection of any automatic presidential ticket for Peter Obi, declaring that the 2023 flagbearer, despite his national popularity and 6.1 million votes, must compete in a full primary like every other aspirant ahead of the 2027 elections. National Publicity Secretary Obiora Ifoh delivered the shock announcement on Thursday, insisting the party will not coronate anyone: “There is no automatic ticket for anyone. Every aspirant must go through a transparent, democratically conducted primary.” The statement, a direct blow to circulating assumptions that Obi’s stature guaranteed him a smooth ride to the 2027 nomination, comes at a time when his relationship with the LP is visibly frayed. Obi has not attended NEC meetings for over a year, has grown increasingly distant from Chairman Julius Abure, and is widely rumored to be considering a defection to the ADC coalition. Ifoh, asked pointedly about Obi’s future, offered no comfort: “Only Peter Obi can answer that.” Party insiders say the NEC’s latest session barely mentioned Obi, instead focusing on INEC-supervised state congresses and structural reforms aimed at cleansing LP after the chaotic 2023 fallout. The refusal to grant Obi a free pass is not entirely new — similar rumors in February and May 2025 were dismissed — but today’s stance is the clearest signal yet that the party is preparing for a bruising internal contest rather than a coronation. The Obidient movement, Obi’s vibrant youth base, is sharply split. A viral X poll with more than 50,000 votes shows 55% backing open primaries — “Democracy first!” — while 45% accuse the party of betrayal, arguing that “Obi built LP from political irrelevance.” With the ADC openly courting him and insisting that it “won’t bend principles for stars,” Obi faces a defining crossroads: stay and fight in a contest he once seemed guaranteed to win, or defect and ignite a new third-force configuration ahead of 2027. As #NoAutoTicket trends with over 100,000 posts, one reality stands tall in Nigeria’s pre-election landscape: the Labour Party has drawn its line in stone, and the next move perhaps the most consequential of his political career belongs entirely to Peter Obi.
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