Former Labour Party (LP) chieftain, Kenneth Okonkwo, has narrated how the 2023 presidential candidate of the party, Peter Obi betrayed him.
Okonkwo who officially confirmed his resignation from the Labour Party in February 2025 made this allegation against Obi in a viral video on social media.
If there is anybody that betrayed the other, I can say it emphatically that Peter Obi betrayed me,” the former Nollywood actor and spokesperson for the LP Presidential Campaign Council said.
The Julius Abure-led LP members lied to Obi that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had accepted them and Obi surreptitiously went back to them but I told him: ‘Sir, you have made a public statement on integrity and even if INEC has accepted them, that is not a criterion for you to go back and start dealing with them because they have shown that they are not democratic. If you go back to them, they will destroy your political career and everything you have said about integrity will die’.
“I told Obi that these people had become agents in the hands of the government to destabilise him. What they did was absolutely illegal and unconstitutional, I told him that if he went back to them, I wouldn’t join him in doing so.
Thereafter, I called all the people that were in the inner circle and told them the same thing about what Obi was trying to do. I told them he wanted to go back with the Abure people and if he did, I wouldn’t go back with him because I do not swallow back my words.
And after saying all those things, within like 72 hours, Obi went back to Abure’s office to publicly endorse them and while he was there talking to them, one of the leaders in that executive sent me the video to mock me that the person I was fighting for against them has come to their office to endorse them.
“It was when INEC dissociated itself from Abure that Obi came out to start acting neutral but I told him he could not be neutral and something had to be done.”
Okonkwo earlier said he decided to leave the party after Obi failed to solve the party’s internal crisis, explaining thathe no longer had the confidence that PO had what it takes to build a party that can win these kakistocrats and kleptocrats, and above all, he had proven that even if the people voted for him, he lacks what it takes to secure the mandate.Okonkwo earlier said he decided to leave the party after Obi failed to solve the party’s internal crisis, explaining thathe no longer had the confidence that PO had what it takes to build a party that can win these kakistocrats and kleptocrats, and above all, he had proven that even if the people voted for him, he lacks what it takes to secure the mandate.
“I believed that Peter Obi will seize the momentum and build a solid party of integrity that will have the solid base that we need to overthrow these kakistocrats and kleptocrats. He just needed to give the right directives and everyone will fall in line.
“I received my first shock when he publicly declared that he didn’t promise Nigerians to build a strong Labour Party, but to solve Nigeria problems. I was like, does it mean HE Peter Obi is not aware that without a solid party base, we are heading to no where politically? However, I continued in his defence believing he will still privately bring the needed solution to LP problems. to no avail.
PO also publicly demanded that the Abure led National Working Committee must organise an all inclusive convention that will guarantee the participation of all members of Labour Party in the choice of their leaders.
This didn’t happen, and surprisingly, PO refused to disassociate himself from the shenanigans and criminal activities of the former NWC as their time has expired. Every member of Labour Party is confused today as to the future of Labour Party because of lack of leadership from PO over the party, and unfortunately, when they look up to me to tell them about PO’s standpoint, I sincerely have nothing to tell them because I don’t know myself. I cannot continue to speak on behalf of a leader that I do not know his stand on issues of great importance. I simply don’t know how to manipulate facts.“
Okonkwo said he was shocked that Obi could not openly support the efforts of the Labour Unions who founded the Labour Party as a base to fight for the welfare of workers to the extent that some of them are openly saying that Obi is now the problem of the party.
He said the Labour Unions now have the unfortunate situation where they are fighting criminals who want to hijack their party when an ordinary statement from Obi would have brought the solution.
