Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesperson to the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has denied claims that he opposed the selection of former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, as the party’s vice-presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
Okonkwo clarified that his earlier comments were not directed against Amaechi personally but were a geopolitical argument in favour of the South-East producing the vice-presidential candidate.
The former Labour Party presidential campaign spokesperson had previously criticised the ADC’s decision to pair Atiku with Amaechi, arguing that the vice-presidential slot should have been allocated to the South-East. He had also indicated that he would not campaign for Atiku if the region was excluded from the ticket.
However, speaking during an interview on Channels Television on Thursday, Okonkwo dismissed suggestions that he remained opposed to Amaechi’s emergence.
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“I do not know where you got that from,” he said when asked whether he still rejected Amaechi as Atiku’s running mate.
Responding to a further question on whether he now supports Amaechi’s nomination, Okonkwo said the former Rivers State governor is the party’s duly chosen candidate and deserves the support of loyal members.
“First and foremost, he is the choice of the party and everybody that is a loyal party member,” he stated.
Okonkwo explained that his earlier position reflected his expectation that the vice-presidential slot should ideally have gone to the South-East. However, he acknowledged that the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2026, significantly limited the party’s options.
According to him, anyone seeking to contest an election must have been a registered member of the political party at least 21 days before the primary election, a requirement that ruled out several prominent South-East politicians he would have preferred.
“I said I expected that the Vice President should come from South-East. It was a geopolitical expression, not the person of anybody, and of course I understood the limitations within the Electoral Act 2026,” he said.
He explained that the leading aspirants who had shown interest in contesting the ADC presidential ticket included Atiku Abubakar, Rotimi Amaechi, Hayatu-deen and Peter Obi.
Okonkwo noted that following Peter Obi’s exit from the race, the South-East found itself without a viable contender for either the presidential or vice-presidential position within the party.
He further argued that Amaechi’s strong performance during the party’s presidential primary, where he secured more than 500 votes, made it politically difficult to overlook him.
“Amaechi got up to 500 and something voters in the primary; you cannot alienate them,” he said.
Despite accepting the party’s decision, Okonkwo maintained that the ADC leadership should have engaged stakeholders from the South-East before finalising its choice.
According to him, consultations would have helped party leaders explain the legal and political constraints behind the decision, thereby reducing feelings of exclusion within the region.
“What I was agitating is that even if you have constraints, you ought to get the people of South-East and sit down with them and say, ‘Look, these are my constraints.’ Then they will know what they will present to their people,” he added.
Okonkwo also revealed that Atiku Abubakar was outside the country when the announcement of the vice-presidential candidate was made.
He said the former vice president moved quickly to address concerns upon his return by initiating consultations with key stakeholders.
“Atiku was not in Nigeria when the party made the announcement; he travelled, so when he came in, he did the needful. If you recall, and that is the beauty of this great democrat, when he came in, everything was halted. When he came in, he went into dialogue and called all the parties,” Okonkwo said.
His latest comments appear to signal an end to the controversy surrounding his earlier criticism, reaffirming his support for the Atiku-Amaechi ticket while continuing to advocate greater political inclusion for the South-East within the ADC.
