Amid the wave of defection that has characterised the Nigerian political space, Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, has revealed that he will not be defecting to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) alongside Mr Peter Obi.

New Telegraph had earlier reported that Obi, a Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, formalised his defection to the coalition party on Tuesday, December 30.

Reacting to the development, Otti, in a statement issued by the Abia State Government during its monthly media chat in Umuahia, the state capital, explained that Obi had informed him of his plan to exit the party, and he gave him his blessings.

The Governor, however, stressed that he would remain in the party to help rebuild it.

He said, “If you remember, I joined the Labour Party before Peter Obi, so I did not join the party with him.

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“He has communicated to me that he is leaving the Labour Party. I gave him my blessings. But I will remain in the Labour Party, and I told him that I would continue the struggle to rescue the Labour Party.

“That is the party that brought me to power. If we fight and get to the end, and we are able to reposition the Labour Party, then we can discuss other options. Therefore, for now, I am not defecting to any party.”

Responding to calls by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, for him to join the All Progressives Congress, Otti said he did not want to be distracted by responding to such calls.

He said, “Ordinarily, I would not respond to matters like that. However, those of you who listened to my Christmas message will recall that I called on our people who have enough to extend support to the less privileged, particularly persons with disabilities.

“So, seeing that he heeded the call and distributed money to vulnerable people, I thank him for doing that.

“But I have also taken a principled decision not to be provoked or condescending in my response. I am sure you are aware of a man called Winston Churchill. He was a two-time Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and lived from 1874 to 1965.

“He was a profound thinker and writer who said, ‘You will never get to your destination if you stop to throw stones at every dog that barks.’ We will remain focused on our job.”