The Labour Party, LP, on Monday said there is no automatic ticket for any intending presidential candidate.
Obiorah Ifoh, the National Publicity Secretary, disclosed this in response to remarks by former LP presidential candidate, Peter Obi that he might run again on the party’s platform.
Speaking at an event in Abuja, Obi said he would consider running under the LP platform “for now.”
Reacting, Ifoh denied celebrating such a report but noted that the party is not opposed to him running.
The statement reads: “The attention of the leadership of the Labour Party has been drawn to the news trending in the media that the party is “celebrating” that its candidate in the 2023 presidential election, Peter Obi has declared his intention to run on the platform of the party in 2027.
“I want to state emphatically that I was quoted out of context and therefore, the impression conveyed by the news was erroneous, inaccurate and does not in any way reflect the position and mood in the party.
“First, while we are not opposed to anybody running under the platform of the Labour Party in the 2027 general election, we need to make it categorically clear that the party has a long standing rule on how its candidates shall emerge and automatic ticket is not one of the routes.
“Recall that at the party’s National Convention in 2024, the party had erroneously granted automatic tickets to our former Presidential candidate and the only governor of the party, however, that decision has since been rescinded and reversed after consulting the statute books.”
