Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has ruled out contesting the presidency or seeking any other elective office after completing his tenure as governor, saying he intends to retire from active politics and make way for younger people.
Otti made the declaration during an interview with Arise Television on Friday while responding to questions about the 2027 presidential contest and the possibility of seeking higher office after completing his tenure in Abia State.
The governor said he had no interest in contesting for the presidency, Senate or any other political position after leaving the Abia governorship.
“I keep saying it, I’m not interested in anything else. I don’t even want to go to the Senate. I’m not interested,” Otti said, according to reports of the interview.
He explained that his decision was partly informed by his preference for younger Nigerians to take up leadership positions rather than having political office holders remain active in politics indefinitely.
Otti is serving his second term as governor of Abia State and is expected to complete his tenure in 2031. He has previously made similar statements about retiring from politics after his governorship.
In December 2025, the governor said he had no presidential, vice-presidential or senatorial ambition after his tenure. He said he entered politics with a specific mission and would leave office when he believed that mission had been fulfilled.
His latest comments therefore reaffirm a position he has expressed publicly on several occasions rather than representing a new declaration about his political future.
Otti’s remarks come against the backdrop of growing political activity ahead of the 2027 general elections. Several political figures have declared presidential ambitions, while parties and political coalitions have continued to reorganise their structures ahead of the election.
During the interview, Otti was also questioned about former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi’s presidential ambition. Obi is currently the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, while former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress.
Otti’s comments on his own political future are separate from the question of which candidate or party he may support in the 2027 presidential election.
The governor has, however, recently spoken about his relationship with President Bola Tinubu and his position as a member of the National Economic Council.
In a separate interview aired on Arise Television on Friday, Otti said he was supporting Tinubu’s presidency in his capacity as a state governor and NEC member. He said his participation in the council meant he was involved in some federal government decisions and policies.
Otti’s position has previously generated political discussion, particularly because he is a governor elected on the platform of the Labour Party while Tinubu is seeking another term on the platform of the All Progressives Congress.
In July, Otti also rejected a claim by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma that all five South-East governors had collectively agreed to support Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid. Otti said no individual governor had the authority to determine how the entire region would vote.
On the issue of succession in Abia, Otti had earlier said he did not intend to become a political godfather. He said Abia voters should determine his successor after his tenure rather than having the governor impose a successor.
The governor’s latest declaration places his stated political plans beyond 2031 in clear terms: he says he does not intend to seek another elective position after completing his tenure and wants younger Nigerians to have opportunities to lead.
Whether that position remains unchanged until the end of his tenure will ultimately depend on Otti himself and the political circumstances at that time.
