“Obi Is Not a Leader — He’s Destroying Himself Politically,” Kenneth Okonkwo Blasts Ex-ally

Kenneth Okonkwo, a former spokesperson of the Labour Party (LP), has accused Peter Obi, the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, of betrayal and poor leadership. Speaking in an interview with Symfoni TV, Okonkwo alleged that Obi failed to address the leadership crisis within the party following the 2023 elections, choosing instead to support the faction led by Julius Abure—whom Okonkwo accused of aligning with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Okonkwo, who left the LP in July 2024, criticised Obi for allegedly ignoring repeated warnings to distance himself from Abure’s faction. He questioned Obi’s ability to lead, describing him as someone who lacks teamwork and managerial competence. According to Okonkwo, Obi’s leadership has alienated loyal party members and, in some cases, involved endorsements of non-Labour Party candidates during elections.

Reflecting on the 2023 campaign, Okonkwo recalled the initial momentum of the LP movement, calling it an “organic” drive for change that he joined out of personal conviction, not political opportunism. “Nobody drafted me into it. I followed the movement on my own accord,” he said, adding that he committed fully to the role he played, believing the party had won the election.

However, Okonkwo said Obi has since demonstrated that he is not a “politician of conviction” but one of convenience. “Nobody is murdering Obi’s political career. Obi is committing political suicide. And I mean it,” he stated.

Dismissing any suggestion that he betrayed Obi, Okonkwo insisted it was the other way around. “Any politician who knows what he is doing cannot be betrayed by anybody. If there is anybody who betrayed the other, I can say it emphatically that Peter Obi betrayed me.”

Since leaving the party, Okonkwo has maintained that Obi lacks the capacity to build a winning political platform. In the lead-up to his exit, he had described the Labour Party as a “secret society led by a group of clowns,” reflecting deep dissatisfaction with the party’s direction and leadership.