Pat Utomi Vows to Withdraw Support if Peter Obi Accepts Vice-Presidential Slot, Affirms Obi Will Run for President in 2027

Political economist Professor Pat Utomi has declared that he would immediately stop supporting Peter Obi if the former Anambra State governor chooses to run as someone’s vice-presidential candidate in the upcoming 2027 elections. Utomi made the remark during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, reinforcing his conviction that Obi will contest the presidency under the African Democratic Congress (ADC), which he joined on Wednesday.

Utomi’s comments followed claims by Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, who alleged that Obi had already agreed to serve as Atiku Abubakar’s running mate under the ADC in 2027. Dismissing the allegation as unfounded, Utomi insisted that Obi’s political trajectory remains firmly focused on the presidential seat.

“I can tell you that Peter Obi will contest for the presidency,” Utomi stated emphatically. “The day he becomes somebody’s vice president, I walk away from his corner. I can tell you that for a fact.”

In the wide-ranging conversation, Utomi also argued for an age limit for executive political offices, proposing that presidential and gubernatorial candidates be restricted to Nigerians aged 70 or younger. He criticised what he described as the trend of the Nigerian presidency becoming “a retirement home,” with successive administrations led by individuals lacking the physical capacity to govern effectively.

“The Nigerian presidency has become a retirement home where people go for the Nigerian state to pay their medical bills. It is not acceptable,” he said, faulting both former President Muhammadu Buhari and President Bola Tinubu for presiding over what he called “government-in-absentia.”

Utomi vowed to campaign vigorously for the age cap, insisting that leadership must reflect competence, health, and vitality — qualities he argued are essential for managing a nation as complex as Nigeria.

His intervention comes at a pivotal moment in the political realignment surrounding Peter Obi, who finished third in the 2023 presidential election with more than six million votes. On Wednesday in Enugu, Obi formally defected to the ADC in what he described as the beginning of a historic “rescue mission” aimed at reclaiming and rebuilding Nigeria.

“Today is an important day… we are ending this year with the hope that, in 2026, we will begin a journey to rescue our country,” Obi said at the declaration event. He accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of undermining Nigeria’s democracy through coercion and intimidation of the opposition, vowing that such practices would no longer be tolerated.

“We have all watched as those who benefited from our democracy have become accessories to destroying it,” Obi warned. “We cannot allow this to happen; we will resist it.”

As political tensions heighten ahead of 2027, Utomi’s comments underscore the expectations surrounding Obi’s next move and the growing momentum within the ADC, which now positions itself as a major contender in the race for Nigeria’s leadership.