Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has announced that he will back Olumide Akpata, the Labour Party’s candidate, for governor of Edo State in a bid to secure victory at the poll.
Governor Otti made the statement after meeting with members of the National Working Committee (NWC), Akpata and other candidates, who ran for the Edo governorship primary in Umuahia.
In a statement, the governor declared that Akpata could run in the election, noting that reconciliation was very key for the LP to win the governorship poll.
“Reconciliation is very vital. People sometimes after an election get offended and it can always happen so, I can assure you that there is a lot of progress that we have made today,” Otti said.
At the event, the National Chairman of the LP, Julius Abure, said they were in Abia to discuss the outcome of the primary elections with Otti and the leaders of the party.
“We just concluded our party primaries in Edo and its fallout is what you see us dealing with today under the leadership of His Excellency the Governor of Abia State.
“We were able to bring most of the aspirants together with the candidate to have a formidable force that would go into the campaign. I am sure all the grey areas that the aspirants were having have been sorted out today.
“I’m sure that we are coming out more united, we are coming out stronger and will be able to face the challenges in Edo,” Abure said.
He dismissed the rumour of internal crises in the party, saying, “I must make it clear that the internal crises you talked about are overblown.
“Apart from the issue we had with the National Treasurer, I think that we have no other internal matter. All other ones we’ve been having are external and we have dealt with it sufficiently.”
Abure praised Alex Otti, the LP’s lone governor in Abia, for his work there and insisted that party members will not be deterred by the abuse they endure.
Additionally, Olumide Akpata, the Labour Party’s candidate for governor of Edo State, declared that the party would take advantage of the Abia governor’s achievement to win the governorship poll.
