Labour Party National Vice President, South-West, Abayomi Arabambi, has identified former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the only serious contender to President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Arabambi made the statement on Thursday during an appearance on TVC’s Politics Tonight, where he assessed the evolving opposition landscape ahead of the election.
The Labour Party chieftain said Atiku was the only opposition figure he currently considered capable of mounting a serious challenge against the incumbent.
“We have a sitting president that is one, and we have only one contender against the president. The only contender we have that I know is serious to slug it out with the incumbent is Alhaji Atiku Abubakar,” he said.
Arabambi, however, dismissed speculation surrounding Peter Obi’s potential participation in the 2027 presidential race.
Obi, who contested the 2023 presidential election under the Labour Party, is currently associated with the Nigerian Democratic Congress, NDC.
Arabambi described the former Anambra State governor as more focused on public commentary than pursuing the presidency.
“When you look at Peter Obi, you know that one for every reason known to Nigerians, is just the chief content creator,” he said.
He also questioned some of the statistics Obi has used while commenting on national issues.
According to Arabambi, some figures cited by Obi had later been shown to be inaccurate.
“He’s a man, who comes with all manner of statistics that you now find out to be false,” the Labour Party leader said.
Arabambi further claimed that Obi would not contest the 2027 presidential election.
He said members of the opposition movement were already aware of Obi’s position.
“He’s not contesting, even their leader know Obi is not contesting,” Arabambi said.
The Labour Party chieftain also weighed in on the debate over regional zoning of the presidency.
He argued that the presidency is currently zoned to the South. The region, he said, should be allowed to complete its eight-year tenure.
“But for now, the presidency has been zoned to the south,” he stated.
Arabambi pointed to the events surrounding the 2023 presidential election in support of his position.
He recalled that Atiku entered the race after former President Muhammadu Buhari completed eight years in office.
However, Nigerians ultimately chose Tinubu, according to Arabambi.
He said the decision reflected a preference for allowing the South to complete an eight-year presidential tenure before power could return to another region.
“In 2023, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar came out to say he wanted to run after the eight years of former President Muhammadu Buhari,” he said.
Arabambi’s comments come as political parties and opposition groups continue positioning themselves ahead of the 2027 election.
