Kenneth Okonkwo Reveals Electoral Act Limited Atiku's South-East VP Options

Kenneth Okonkwo, the spokesperson for the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has dismissed claims that he opposed the choice of former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, as the party’s vice-presidential candidate. Okonkwo also highlighted that Atiku acknowledged his contributions despite their past disagreements, while simultaneously accusing his former principal and Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) 2027 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, of betrayal.

During an appearance on Channels Television on Thursday, Okonkwo clarified that his previous remarks regarding the vice-presidential slot were rooted in a geopolitical consideration, not personal animosity towards Amaechi. When questioned about any lingering opposition to Amaechi’s emergence as Atiku’s running mate, Okonkwo stated, “I do not know where you got that from.” He affirmed his support for the party’s decision, adding, “First and foremost, he is the choice of the party and everybody that is a loyal party member.”

Okonkwo elaborated that his initial stance was that the vice-presidential candidate should ideally hail from the South-East region. However, he pointed out that specific provisions within the Electoral Act 2026 significantly narrowed the pool of eligible candidates. “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. Remember, for anybody to be eligible to contest, you must have been a member 21 days before the primary, so the people from the South-East that I would have preferred, strictly speaking, were not even registered members, so we are restricted,” he explained.

He further identified the key contenders within the party before the primary election as Atiku Abubakar, Rotimi Amaechi, Hayatu-deen, and Peter Obi. Okonkwo noted, “Rotimi Amaechi, Hayatu-deen, Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, these were the people that were showing interest to contest the presidential election, and then when Peter Obi left, South-East was thrown into confusion, and you have to pick a vice president that has elicited interest that he wants to embark on the onerous duty of campaigning around the nation.”

Okonkwo also stressed Amaechi’s strong performance in the party’s primary, where he garnered over 500 votes, making him a significant stakeholder whose supporters could not be disregarded. “Amaechi got up to 500 and something voters in the primary, you cannot alienate them,” he stated. His primary concern, he added, was that party leadership should have consulted with South-East stakeholders before making a definitive choice. “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,” Okonkwo asserted.

He further revealed that Atiku was not in Nigeria when the vice-presidential announcement was initially made. Upon his return, Atiku promptly initiated consultations. “Atiku was not in Nigeria when the party made the announcement, he traveled, 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, called all the parties,” Okonkwo concluded.