Exclusive: I’m Running for Nigerians, Not Against Tinubu, Obi, Atiku – LP Presidential Candidate Dr Okereke Says

Labour Party presidential candidate for the 2027 election, Dr Chibuzor Okereke, has said his decision to contest the presidency is driven by a desire to contribute to national development and provide what he described as a new model of governance for Nigeria.

Okereke, who spoke during an interview with Newsleverage, said he was not contesting against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi or former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, but for the Nigerian people.

The presidential candidate said his background in legislative studies, public policy, governance and institutional development had prepared him for national leadership, adding that his campaign would focus on decentralising governance, investing in human capital, reforming the pension system and improving accountability.

He also cited the administration of Abia State Governor Alex Otti as a model that his party intends to replicate at the national level, arguing that governance outcomes at the state level could provide practical lessons for federal administration.

Okereke further defended his emergence as the Labour Party’s presidential candidate amid suggestions that his candidacy could benefit President Tinubu’s re-election bid.

Question: You are the candidate in the race for the Labour Party in the 2027 Presidential election. What prompted you to seek the presidential ticket and fight for the number-one position in Nigeria?

Dr Chibuzor Okereke: It is my democratic right to do so. I have also been around for some time, and I understand my constitutional obligations. Having prepared for leadership, supported institutional frameworks and designs, and observed the gaps in what we have been doing over the years, I believe I have something to contribute.

The patriotic spirit to contribute to the improvement of our nation and society is my driving force. I believe we must live for something. Vision and purpose are what drive me.

As a student of Nigeria, I believe everybody should come to that point of responsibility where you begin to think about what you can do for your nation and not just what your nation can do for you, as John F. Kennedy stated.

I don’t believe we should live in complacency. I believe our lives should be anchored on vision and purpose, and that God has directed us in various ways and spheres of life to contribute to the advancement of humanity.

Some people are doing this through the private sector. OtIre contributing through non-governmental organisations, commun,ity development efforts or education. I have also contributed through different spheres of my professional life.

However, I realised that within the constitutional design of our democracy, politics is key to governance, leadership and general societal development.

As an educationist, you are influenced by government policies. As a medical doctor, engineer, NGO practitioner or professional in any field, the centre that influences what you do, how you do it, the outcomes and the scale of your impact rests largely on governmental structures and leadership.

Therefore, being in government would provide me with an opportunity to scale up the positive impact I am already making.

Question: The number-one position in Nigeria is a big dream. Why do you think Nigerians will vote for you?

Dr Chibuzor Okereke: I am made for big dreams. All my life, I hDr pursued big dreams.

As you said, I was born here in Arochukwu. I grew up here and went to school here. I lost my father at the age of 13. He had promised to train me to the highest level of education, but he was no longer there before I completed my junior secondary education.

Nevertheless, I pursued that dream. I completed secondary school and obtained a National Diploma with distinction, with my name on the Roll of Honour. I proceeded to the university and graduated with honours.

I became the Student Union President at the University of Nigeria, where I had the opportunity to administer a government that had the judiciary, legislature, House of Representatives and Senate, as well as an executive arm, which I headed.

I proceeded to obtain my first master’s degree with distinction as the best graduating student of the University of Benin in Legislative Studies. I later obtained another master’s degree in Public Policy and Administration from Bayero University, where I graduated as the best student in the department with distinction.

I proceeded to a PhD in Legislative Governance Studies at the Federal University Lokoja and completed my thesis with distinction. I am also a candidate for a second PhD in Policy Analysis at Veritas University.

I have innovated and contributed to institutional development. I created a governance framework for accountability in legislative institutions in Nigeria.

I also developed the National Assembly Deliberative Barometer Index Report, which I consider one of the most comprehensive works capturing legislative performance in Nigeria. The framework, design and digital interactive dashboard were developed through the organisation I lead, AGAF Afrca.

I have been involved in several policy advocacy initiatives, policy designs, institutional designs and system-management efforts in Nigeria.

On issues such as the Not Too Young to Run legislation, I was a major part of the advocacy. I was also involved in advocacy around the Electoral Act reforms of 2022 and the police reform campaign.

I created a model National Nigerian Youth Budget Assembly, where young Nigerians from across the country were brought together to deliberate on their contribution to the national budget framework.

The idea was to ask important questions: What should the youth budget be? If we want to make intentional investments in young people and equip th,em with the necessary resources and competence, how do we achieve that?

We also examined whether the national budget was responsive to young people, women, persons with disabilities and other groups, and how inclusive the budget process was.

I have also led the National Citizens Club, building active membership across the country. It was a youth social-development club focused on increasing young people’s consciousness about politics and governance.

I was a founding member of the National Youth Assembly of Nigeria, which had active membership across the country and helped young people understand executive practices and procedures while supporting their participation in the policy process.

I won the African Union Agenda country representative for West Africa and a U.S. Missions YALI alumnus under the Obama Young African Leaders Initiative.

I served as desk officer for the World Bank Parliamentary Network, an international parliamentary network involving lawmakers who focus on tracking World Bank interventions and promoting accountability and transparency in World Bank and IMF activities.

I also served as desk officer of the Nigeria-Israel Parliamentary Alliance Caucus, a pro-legislative diplomatic group that bringshaving having having having having having legislators together from across the country to support shared interests.

I can go on and on.

In terms of legislative practice and procedure, I believe I am one of the leading voices in Nigeria. In oversight design, I have designed investigative hearings, including those relating to abandoned projects in the Niger Delta during the Ninth Assembly.

I consult for the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly, House of Representatives, and through our work, we have contributed to the recovery of several hundred billion naira for Nigeria through investigative hearings.

We were also part of the team that reviewed the legislative role in the Treaties Making Procedure Act and restored the national depository of treaties, which had become moribund in the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation.

So, I have built my experience over the years, and I believe all of these experiences position me to contribute meaningfully to national leadership.

Nigeria has been run largely on projects and programmes, but we are presenting a different model. Abia State is our model, and we want to scale up and extrapolate the best governance outcomes in Abia for Nigeria.

The reason is simple: people can see and experience what is happening, and people are talking about it. We can empirically speak to the fact that our governor has taken the happinDr index of Abians from zero to almost 98 per cent in just three years in government.

I represent the Labour Party, and that is our vision. That is how we intend to govern. It is going to be one of the greatest resets Nigeria has ever experienced across all sectors and fabrics of our national life.

I understand that the federal system we are operating today cannot effectively drive development. The current Nigerian Constitution, which provides for three tiers of government, has resulted in a situation where only one tier is actively functional in many areas, which is the Federal Government.

The police station in my village needs a budget from Abuja. How can that work? Who from your village is on the National Budget Committee in the Federal Ministry of Finance? The system is not designed to have representatives from every village.

The budget is then presented to the National Assembly, where you have representatives from across the country. But even the National Assembly has institutional limitations in the budget-making process, and every village cannot be directly represented there. At best, we have a federal constituency covering a number of communities and local governments.

So, when Federal Government institutions in villages and communities are actively managed, policed and administered from Abuja, you begin to see the monumental decay and dilapidation of institutional and capital infrastructure.

The responsibilities should be properly distributed among the local, state and federal governments, with the Federal Government focusing on issues that genuinely require national coordination.

We need to decongest the Exclusive Legislative List and reduce it to reasonable areas that a national government should focus on, such as currency, national defence, international relations, diplomacy, military and territorial defence, among others.

You cannot effectively run basic education, local transportation and other grassroots services from the national government. It is not done that way.

This also means that we have to be bold enough to rework our revenue-sharing system.

However, we do not want to create a situation where decentralisation becomes a basket of corruption involving incompetent governments at the local level. It will require accountability and capacity development so that local governments can properly manage the resources and responsibilities transferred to them.

My formula is simple: when the local government and communities develop, the entire state has developed. When the entire state develops, the nation has developed.

The national government should therefore focus on key responsibilities relating to our territorial integrity rather than trying to drive primary healthcare in villages or directly manage grassroots interventions.

I have said that the National Primary Healthcare Act should be repealed or refocused on policy oversight, while the actual implementation should be carried out at the local level. That means local government must work.

This is different from the usual conversation about local government autonomy. It is about local governance, not merely the existence of local governments or whether they receive funds directly.

There is also the question of capacity. We need leadership capacity at the local level, more competitive elections and participatory processes.

Even agencies responsible for universal basic education should focus on policy rather than becoming procurement centres.

Government policy agencies should focus on research and development and developing new policies that support improvement. They should not primarily exist for awarding contracts and travelling from Abuja to villages to execute projects.

Federal agencies that have established regional and state offices should, in appropriate cases, have their functions devolved to the states and local governments so that the Federal Government can concentrate on its core responsibilities.

For instance, an agency responsible for power and energy should focus on research and development into how to provide energy to rural communities rather than simply awarding contracts for solar streetlights in villages.

As someone who has studied governance and systems, I understand the problem we are dealing with.

You heard the Governor of Abia State say that his capital expenditure is about 80 per cent, deliberately and intentionally. He has attributed this approach to the ability of his administration to execute more than 450 roads in three years, alongside primary healthcare centres and other projects.

At the national level, the situation is almost the opposite. About 80 per cent of the budget is recurrent while 20 per cent is capital, and we continue to struggle with the consequences.

We are also going to look at an integrated governance system.

Today, a lawmaker or minister can attract a project from Abuja to his community, perhaps a primary healthcare centre or a school, without informing the state or local government.

Someone simply arrives, acquires land, starts construction and eventually leaves after completing the project.

Some of these facilities are later taken over by weeds because the local government chairman says, “I was not aware of this project.” The local government has its own budget and may need to employ health workers or teachers, but those requirements were not factored into the project.

Who does that?

If the purpose is development, the project should be integrated into the existing governance structure so that it can function effectively.

There are many Federal Government projects across communities that remain under lock and key after completion. Some have even deteriorated.

We are therefore going to run a zero-based budgeting system, rather than the incremental budgeting model we are operating today.

Every item that appears in the budget must have a purpose and must be tied to a development plan.

We should be able to say: this is where we are going according to the development plan; this is where we were last year; this is what we have achievedvedvedvedvedvedved; and this is what remains to be done.

You will therefore have a government that is driven by big data.

For example, you should be able to identify the number of federal roads across Nigeria and classify them according to their responsibilities. Every road under federal responsibility should receive attention based on objective criteria.

We are not going to have a government based on the patronage of a “big daddy” president, where a federal road receives attention because the president likes a particular governor or politician from that area.

No.

Every federal road should receive appropriate attention because it belongs to the Nigerian people.

That is why our vision is “Nigerians First.”

“Nigeria First” speaks primarily to our territorial boundaries. “Nigerians First” speaks to putting the people at the centre of governance. Establishing heritage and building a legacy are important, but if the children who inherit them are not properly equipped, all those achievements could eventually disappear.

That is why I believe in investing in people and building human capital. We need quality people with the right resources, skills and competence to sustain the dream we have for this country.

I have taken time to examine the issues critically and from different perspectives. So, if anybody asks why they should support me, they can see that I understand clearly what the problems are and have solutions to address them across every sector.

Whether you talk about energy or any other sector, I can tell you what the challenges are and what needs to be done to fix the system. We have empirical evidence of the problems, and we are benchmarking what we are doing against the achievements of the governor of our state, who is also the national leader of our party. You can see what is happening in Anambra.

Question: You have mentioned the Governor of Abia State several times during this interview. Some people have suggested that your emergence as the Labour Party’s presidential candidate could make it easier for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to retain power. How do you respond to that claim? And what is your strategy for ensuring that the Labour Party remains competitive in 2027, especially given the momentum the party gathered in the 2023 election?

Dr. Chibuzor Okereke: The momentum is already retained. We have to speak to the facts.

His Excellency Peter Obi contributed significantly to the Labour Party’s performance in 2022 and 2023. But remember that the Governor of Abia State joined the Labour Party before Peter Obi came into the party. Because he was running for governor, there was already significant momentum in Abia around the party.

Another thing people do not know about the Labour Party is that it has existed for more than two decades. It is a party founded by Nigerian workers. It is also an international labour-oriented political movement with counterparts in countries such as the United Kingdom, Brazil and Australia, among others.

It is the party of Nigerian workers. When you say a party is the party of Nigerian workers, you are essentially talking about a large segment of Nigerians because almost all of us are workers.

The institutional membership of the party was therefore part of what was mobilised.

Before then, there had been crises within the party, particularly over the relationship betweenenenenenenen the political leadership of the party and organised labour, including the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria.

The NLC and TUC have large affiliate structures across the country and internationally. Our strategy is to tap into that institutional resource base, particularly the grassroots structures extending down to the polling-unit level.

Workers also saw the possibility of a Labour Party government that would give workers a stronger voice. We had previously seen the Labour Party govern Ondo State under Olusegun Mimiko, and the experience demonstrated that the party could provide a platform for policies addressing workers’ concerns.

The emergence of the Labour Party in Brazil also contributed to the international visibility of labour-oriented political movements.

The reason I am explaining this is that we should not make it appear as though one personality alone created the momentum. There were several intervening factors.

The membership of the NLC and TUC, political commissions and committees, and structures down to the polling-unit level were all part of that process.

Remember that it is the party that sponsors candidates. The candidate’s personal influence contributes to the party’s performance, but the party retains its institutional assets and also inherits its liabilities.

Peter Obi emerged as the presidential candidate and the party recorded about six million votes in 2023. That support is not simply attached to an individual; there is an institutional structure behind it.

The party also inherited internal crises. As you heard the governor say, he stayed back, even at the risk of his own political ticket, to help resolve the crisis because he believed that when there is a crisis, you continue to deal with it.

The disputes went through litigation up to the Supreme Court and subsequently through further legal processes before the party eventually held its Unity National Convention on the 28th.

So, the momentum is natural to the Labour Party. It is simply that many people do not recognise it.

That was why some people underestimated the party in 2023 and were surprised by the number of votes it secured. The Nigerian worker recognised the Labour Party as a political home and saw the possibility of policies that would prioritise workers’ welfare.

Is there any presidential candidate among the 18 candidates on the INEC list who is more educated than me?

I am one of the most educated, if not the most educated, presidential candidates for the 2027 election. That means I have been preparing and I have prepared.

Is there anyone among them who has been a student union president and actually administered a government?
Only President Tinubu, Governor Seyi Makinde and myself have had that experience of running governments at the state level.

So, consider that President Tinubu and I are among the presidential candidates with direct experience of active state governance that can be modelled.
People are free to say whatever they want, and I laugh because I believe they want young people to rise and make a difference.
Here is a young man who, at 43, has accomplished what I have accomplished, and I am putting myself forward to support the system and improve governance outcomes.

Question: Some people argue that your emergence could affect the Labour Party’s chances and indirectly benefit other candidates. Why should voters support you?

Dr. Chibuzor Okereke: You have heard the governor say that he is going to support his presidential candidate. Why do you want to choose to believe another?
That is how we give away power. Power has a psychological component. If you continue not to see a chance in a young man who has prepared, handled leadership responsibilities, and prepared himself educationally and in many other ways, it is your choice to say, “This is where we will pitch.”

You can also say, “Oh, he has not been a governor or senator before.” But those are the experiences you are saying have kept you in bondage, and you want that experience to be the only experience you consider before giving someone your support.

One of our biggest challenges is the high level of civic illiteracy in Nigeria. We are so educated as a country, but we need to do more about political and civic education.

Voters need to know the power they wield and the reason we have a democratic system that gives one person only one vote, with a secret ballot. It is so that you can make your own independent assessment of the candidate, and nobody will know whom you are voting for.

When the votes are aggregated, the collective will of the people points to one person. Whether they are right or wrong is immaterial; they have expressed themselves.

If there are three of us here, for example, and two of us vote for a certain person, when the results come out, you will know that you voted for the person who won, and I will know that I voted for that person who won. Then we will be happy, is it not? That is how democracy is designed.

Whatever I can say is that I wish they would talk to me. They can get close to me and not use the political personality of, “He wasn’t a former governor,” and all that. If they can get close to me and listen to me, I know I will be a more vibrant, digital, innovative and inventive president who has vision and courage.

Nigeria is not meant to be about building roads and all that. Nigeria, where is Nigeria going? Ask an average Nigerian: Where are we going? Where is the next chapter?

We are talking about people who have a philosophical governance system, who have a chapter and a destination for the country, where you will no longer live in Nigeria as a sacrifice because you feel it is a punishment to live there and say, “I don’t want Nigeria to happen to me.”

We need a country where hope is restored and people are not forced to look elsewhere. When you go around, people are saving money to travel abroad. Why are they doing so? Because they believe they will get a fair chance to get ahead.

So, somebody is offering them a government where a lawmaker will not feel it is a privilege to talk to you. He will be the one running to meet his people and be accountable. That is the system we are going to run.

So, I don’t think they are correct. The governor has already told them that, as a party man, he is going to support his presidential candidate.

By the way, am I the only presidential candidate? We are 18. All the other candidates will also make their cases. Is it Atiku who is my grandfather? They would rather support him?

I have said in my interview on one of the stations that almost all the presidential candidates, particularly the major candidates, are talking about how to improve the lives of young people. But I am the young person.

And I have said, “Anything for us without us is against us.” I am the light bearer of the aspirations of young people, and I represent that constituency. I am ready to provide the leadership.

So, it is for them to support me. It is a democracy. I will have my strategy. I will continue to make a case. All the other candidates should continue to make their cases.

If the people decide, my joy is that I have a lot of people supporting me. So, I am not even worrying much about who said or did not say what.

Governor Otti today is the best-performing governor in Nigeria, inherited a state that was in complete collapse. I am mentioning him because he is the only governor of our party today. He is the national leader of our party, and he is making us proud.
If we don’t market him, if we don’t tell Nigerians, “This is an example; how happy Abians are is an example of what you will get nationally,” then I am not truly utilising the leverage we have.

It is not every presidential candidate who can point to somewhere where their party is demonstrating an example of governance excellence. But we are proud to have His Excellency and what he is doing.

We are the only state where people are talking about power and saying, “Bye-bye to the national grid.” I have heard similar things from many other places, but it happened here.

So, they want me to be talking about my own plans when I have examples to give of how we are going to do it.

Question: Finally, Your Excellency, what is that one policy of the incumbent President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, that you would retain if elected as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria? And what should the people expect in the first 100 days?

Dr. Chibuzor Okereke: It is not “if elected.” It is “when elected.”
One of the major issues I intend to address is pension reform.

The current contributory pension system, where workers are mandatory contributors, needs fundamental reform. For me, it is not fair for workers to bear the burden alone. If workers contribute, the government should also contribute.

We also cannot simply import a pension model from America or other Western countries without considering Nigeria’s realities, where millions of people live in multidimensional poverty.
People should not have to wait until a particular retirement age before their pension savings can begin addressing critical socioeconomic needs.

We understand economics and banking. The money is not simply kept in a drawer until a worker reaches retirement age. It is invested and used within the financial system.

Therefore, the pension system should actively support people’s socioeconomic needs, including housing, health insurance, education and other areas.
If we want to improve the welfare of Nigerians, we cannot continue using systems that leave people vulnerable.

So, the momentum will be sustained. It is already being sustained, as you can see from what the party is generating.
But the question of whether my emergence would make President Tinubu’s position more comfortable is not how I see the contest.

I have told people that I am not running against President Tinubu. I am not running against Governor Peter Obi or Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

I am running for the Nigerian people.

We have lived in a country where politicians and political parties sometimes behave as though they are the only stakeholders that matter. Even when citizens complain, some politicians assume that it is simply the opposition speaking.

No. They are Nigerian citizens who may not care about your party or your politics. They want governance, happiness and development in their lives. They want opportunities and access.