NIGERIA: Governor Otti Affirms Loyalty To Labour Party, But Says ‘Nobody Knows Tomorrow’

By Onoja Baba, Nigeria 

Abia State Governor Alex Otti has reaffirmed that he remains a member of the Labour Party while hinting at possible future changes, stating that “nobody knows tomorrow.”

Speaking during the January 2026 edition of his monthly media interaction on Thursday, Governor Otti addressed ongoing controversies surrounding the leadership crisis in the Labour Party.

He maintained that the tenure of the party’s national chairman, Julius Abure, had expired, a position upheld by a recent court judgment. “We are on the right side. We have maintained that Abure’s tenure has expired and we went to court, which affirmed that. The court judgment confirmed that his tenure had actually expired and advised people to obey court decisions to save the courts from unnecessary troubles,” he said.

The governor stressed that Abia State was not currently in an election period and reiterated his intention to contest future elections under the Labour Party if the need arises. “We are not in election period. If election comes, we will still run under the Labour Party, but nobody knows tomorrow. But today, I am still in the Labour Party,” he declared.

Responding to reports that some former governors plan to sue him for not residing at the state Government House in Umuahia, Governor Otti welcomed the prospect, saying his lawyers were ready to defend him in court. He argued that no constitutional provision mandates where a governor must live and pointed to the dilapidated condition in which the Government House was left by previous administrations. “Well, I am waiting to be sued. My lawyers are prepared. I have looked at the constitution, there is no provision that I must live somewhere. But then, the state in which they left the Government House was…, I am sure, you are aware of this. I don’t owe them that explanation.”

In the same session, Governor Otti highlighted recent progress in the education sector, noting that school enrollment had risen to over 300,000 pupils while the recruitment of approximately 4,000 teachers continued. He also announced plans to digitally rate and map all hotels and hospitality facilities in Abia State using GPS technology, with assessments based on verified criteria to be accessible online in the coming months. “In the next few months, all the hotels will be assessed using verified criteria. At the click of a button, speedy hotels get their rate

s,” he said.