Peter Obi: We Had Polling That Suggested He Would Defeat Other Candidates Within ADC — Pat Utomi

Scholar, activist, and former presidential candidate, Prof. Pat Utomi, has suggested that Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi made the right decision by leaving the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), arguing that recent developments within the ADC appear to justify the move.

Utomi made the remarks during an interview on Arise Television on Monday, June 1, 2026, while responding to questions about Obi’s political calculations ahead of the 2027 presidential race.

The discussion centered on events that followed the ADC presidential primary, where former Vice President Atiku Abubakar emerged as the party’s candidate amid complaints and concerns raised by some aspirants and party stakeholders.

When asked whether recent developments within the ADC had reassured him that Obi’s decision to leave the party was a wise one, Utomi said the outcome appeared clearer in retrospect. “It seems to be a benefit of hindsight, and if he didn’t move, he would have been trapped,” Utomi said.

The interviewer pointed to the aftermath of the ADC primary, noting that Atiku Abubakar’s victory had been followed by complaints from former Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi and businessman Mohammed Hayatu-deen. The interviewer also suggested that the outcome had appeared predictable long before the exercise was concluded.

Responding, Utomi maintained that available polling had indicated Obi could have defeated other contenders within the party if a transparent process had been followed. “It seems to be a benefit of hindsight, you can see, even though we had polling that suggested he would defeat the other candidates within ADC,” he stated.

However, he argued that the central issue was not necessarily the popularity of individual candidates but whether party leaders were willing to permit a genuinely democratic process.

“But the problem was not so much whether if you had proper direct primaries that what our poll suggested would not happen, but if the main players would allow a proper process,” he said.

Utomi went further to criticise the conduct of party primaries across the Nigerian political landscape, describing many of them as lacking credibility and genuine democratic competition. “I mean, let’s be very frank, let’s be honest. Both the way the process has been managed generally across the board makes all the primary processes complete farce.”

He continued: “Doesn’t matter what party, they are all a farce of sorts. Party apparatchik and bosses, more or less imposing people. So they go through these processes as, you know, make believe of a democratic process.”

According to Utomi, the continued dominance of party power brokers in candidate selection could have long-term consequences for Nigeria’s democratic development. “It’s not going to help Nigerian politics,” he added.