A fierce power play is unfolding in Abia State and the wider South-East as top political actors scramble to position themselves as President Tinubu’s preferred ally ahead of the 2027 elections, GORDI UDEAJA reports.
Governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, the only state chief executive officer on the platform of Labour Party (LP), Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, also from Abia, former governor of the state, Orji Uzor Kalu, and Works Minister Dave Umahi, all on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), are locked in a quiet but intense contest for relevance and proximity to the presidency.
Otti is leveraging his office and re-election bid to secure President Bola Tinubu’s goodwill, assuring the President of cooperation and electoral support. Kalu, the Deputy Speaker, presents himself as Tinubu’s most loyal foot soldier in Abia, utilising his national visibility to criticise Otti’s administration and promote the APC’s ambition to retake the state.
The incumbent Senate Chief Whip, Orji Uzor Kalu, brings deep political connections and significant financial resources, insisting that the APC will deliver Abia for Tinubu. His occasional overtures to Otti underscore his desire to remain central to Tinubu’s political orbit.
Dave Umahi, meanwhile, operates as Tinubu’s regional emissary, using massive federal road projects to consolidate goodwill for the President and subtly shaping alignments across the South-East.
The rivalry reportedly came to a head when Tinubu allegedly cancelled a planned visit to commission projects in Abia and sent Umahi instead, a move that displeased Otti and exposed underlying tensions. As these actors jostle for supremacy, observers warn that governance is already taking a back seat.
Ultimately, Tinubu appears to be keeping all four close, sustaining a multi-centred power structure that strengthens his foothold in Abia and fits neatly into his broader 2027 political strategy.
For a state still rebuilding public trust after years of infrastructural decay and governance deficits, the emerging struggle for political control poses risks that go beyond personal rivalry. It threatens to stall reforms, distort priorities, weaken executive–legislative cooperation, and shift attention away from governance to early electioneering battles.
Those who have followed Abia politics agree that no other state in the country appears to be witnessing the level of early scheming already playing out in preparation for 2027.
Kalu’s ambition is said to be increasingly interpreted as a desire to supplant Otti and ensure the ruling party at the centre takes control of the state.
Though Kalu has not declared interest in contesting the governorship, party stakeholders believe his body language suggests a clear desire to reorganise Abia’s political structure in favour of the APC ahead of the next general elections.
But, another political heavyweight, Mascot Uzor Kalu, the younger brother of Senator Kalu, has quietly signalled interest in the governorship, although he has remained discreet for strategic reasons.
The Deputy Speaker has, however, taken the battle to the frontlines. He has launched the “Renewed Hope Partners for Kalu”, a state-wide mobilisation structure across Abia’s 17 local government areas, to promote his activities, raise political consciousness, and nurture the APC’s support base in readiness for 2027.
In response, Otti’s supporters have formed the “Abia Arise Movement” to promote the governor’s achievements and strengthen arguments for his continuity.
Flashpoint: Kalu questions Otti’s stewardship
The tension intensified after the Deputy Speaker openly criticised Governor Otti for allegedly failing to acknowledge the contributions of President Tinubu’s administration to projects executed in God’s Own State.
At the commissioning of some projects a few months ago, Kalu accused the governor of underperforming despite receiving what he claimed was N38–N40 billion in monthly revenue.
A week later, at an APC rally in Umuahia, Kalu doubled down. Addressing a crowd of party supporters, he declared an open mission to “dislodge Otti’s administration democratically in 2027” and ensure Abia aligns politically with the federal government.
“We have now come to take over, and there is no going back. APC will take over Abia State, so that what comes to Abia from Abuja would be more respectfully expended,” he said, announcing plans for a mega rally scheduled for December 29, 2025.
For Otti and his supporters, Kalu’s comments crossed the line. They accused him of being “economical with the truth,” deliberately inflating revenue figures and attempting to pull down the state government for political advantage.
Otti fires back
Responding through his Media Adviser, Ferdinand Ekeoma, Governor Otti dismissed Kalu’s claims as “spurious”, insisting the Deputy Speaker needed “tutorial more than he needs a microphone.” Ekeoma clarified that Abia’s total allocation for eight months stood at N125 billion, far from the N304 billion it would have been under Kalu’s alleged monthly inflow.
He further explained that the Otti administration inherited a civil service where only about 31,000 “core civil servants” were on the payroll, while thousands of others were ignored. The current government, he said, has expanded the payroll to 67,000 workers, excluding 5,349 newly employed teachers, with a minimum wage now ranging from N70,000 to N74,000, up from N30,000 previously.
According to him, Kalu’s lack of financial understanding led him to make misleading statements. “Couldn’t he have sought help instead of disgracing himself the way he did?” he asked.
At a civic reception in Aba by the Old Bende community, Otti took a more restrained stance, warning politicians making boastful statements about 2027 to stop, insisting elections were “in God’s hands.” He described Kalu’s premature campaign activities as “illegal,” since INEC had yet to release guidelines.
The crisis deepened after Senator Kalu visited Governor Otti in a seemingly harmless political interaction. Shockingly, the APC in Abia immediately distanced itself from the visit, triggering internal confusion and exposing rifts in the party. The incident heightened speculation about changing loyalties, possible alliances, and hidden motives behind the political chess game.
The eruption of controversies around the visit further demonstrated the volatility in Abia’s political environment and the extent to which early 2027 positioning is reshaping relationships.
Caution from traditional rulers and elders
What perhaps residents of Abia State would not like to happen at the moment would be actions that could disrupt and derail governance in the state.
The state’s Traditional Rulers Council, through their Chairman, His Majesty Eze Linus Nto Mba, had, while cautioning on what he described as “premature interests,” urged the Deputy Speaker to be careful not to make public statements he cannot substantiate, stressing that “temperamental and unstatesmanlike outbursts are not acceptable to Abians and are hereby condemned.
“Kalu should refrain from making statements that may pitch Governor Otti against the President and the people of Abia State.
“Otti is a performing governor. Politicians should wait till 2027 to talk about their electoral cum political business and not use their ambitions to put Abia State into political turmoil,” he stated.
Elder statesman and former Secretary to the State Government, Dr Eme Okoro, insisted that Otti does not need a treatise to assure President Tinubu that he appreciates his partnership in the governance of Abia State.
“After all, both had been allies prior to either becoming President or Governor. Therefore, to my mind, people should focus more attention on how Abians must be encouraged to go beyond pomp and pageantry to appreciate Alex Otti’s leadership as Abia’s current governor.
“Must Abians go crawling with cups in their hands to pander to any President who is presiding over our common patrimony?
“I am a farmer from the same local government of Bende, and I know how much I cough out to maintain those I hire from my birthplace, Ozuitem. If Alex Otti indeed gets N38–40 billion naira monthly as alleged by the Deputy Speaker, I cannot be at a loss now about Otti’s expenses in building Abia’s infrastructure on a senatorial district basis. Come with me to see Abia North, from Omenuko to Abia’s vast hinterland, passing through Ihechiowa to Arochukwu. Let my brother persuade Tinubu to let him dualise our heartland roads, for example, from Umuahia passing by Kalu’s magnificent home and linking to Ohafia, but pass through Ozuitem to meet Otti’s highway through Uzuakoli to Ohafia.
“One would have expected the building of a beneficial relationship between the Deputy Speaker and his state governor without baseless political undertones that cannot actually be the basis to speculate on dislodging Otti for the governorship slot in 2027,” he advised.
Chief Liaison Officer of Abia State in Abuja, Iheanyi Chinasa, stated that the Deputy Speaker’s political conduct was widely recognised by well-meaning Abians as “divisive and unpatriotic.”
“His arrogant and selfish behaviour, purportedly derived from his claimed 6th position, is unacceptable. His attention-seeking tactics aim to distract from the efforts of the hardworking Governor, Alex Otti, but only serve to heighten public discontent with his political approach.
“His attempts to pit our state against the President have been futile and will continue to fall flat because the Governor maintains a respectful and positive relationship with him.
Despite the significant resources his propaganda team allocates to undermine the government’s image, the Governor remains unfazed, dismissing him as inconsequential.
“Abians are vigilantly observing and will not tolerate anyone attempting to derail the progressive path of the current government,” he stated.
A chieftain of the APC in the state, Remigius Agbarakwe, stated, however, that there was nothing wrong in the observations and efforts by Kalu to “recover the state for the party,” stressing that “it would be a political miscalculation that, as Deputy Speaker, his state government is controlled by another party.”
He stated that the APC has been repositioned through the efforts of the Deputy Speaker, adding that he had done much to create the necessary environment for the state’s growth and development, stressing that “he cannot be rewarded with anything less.”
Kalu, who is serving his second term in the current assembly, was one of the few elected lawmakers that did not draw boundaries between his APC and the state’s ruling Labour Party.
It was, therefore, surprising when, shortly after he was elected Deputy Speaker, he publicly announced that, as the 6th Citizen of Nigeria, he would be uncomfortable if his state (Abia) were not governed by the same APC that governs the federal government.
Although the days are still far off, all eyes are fixed on the political developments in Abia State, especially with the deluge of defections that have seen the APC and LP gaining more weight in the state. How these inroads would pan out would be defined by time.
While the political brouhaha continues, the escalating power struggle now threatens governance at a fragile moment of recovery. Political distractions risk slowing reforms in infrastructure, revenue growth, workers’ welfare, and security. Tension between Governor Otti and Deputy Speaker Kalu could also strain federal cooperation, stall funding, and weaken project execution.
Prolonged rivalry may unsettle investors, fuel policy uncertainty, and further erode public trust. Defections and realignments across LP and APC are reshaping the landscape ahead of 2027, raising fears of deeper factionalisation. Unless leaders refocus on governance, Abia risks losing its recent momentum and sliding back into instability as ambitions heighten and tensions deepen.
