Okupe withdrew for a substantive running mate to Peter Obi to be announced.
By Emma Ogbuehi
The Director-General, Peter Obi Campaign Organisation, Doyin Okupe, on Thursday, announced his withdrawal as the vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party.
Okupe who made this known via his verified Twitter handle @doyinokupe noted that his party would announce the new running mate to the presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
“This afternoon I submitted my withdrawal letter from the position of the Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party to INEC. A replacement will be announced by the national chairman of the party shortly. I feel greatly blessed to have been part of the foundation of success for the LP,” Okupe tweeted.
Okupe’s withdrawal from the position did not come to many as a surprise.
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It had all along been held that like the ruling All Progressives Congress, the Labour party had named Okupe as the interim vice presidential candidate of the LP in order to beat the deadline by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
Obi had earlier said that he would prefer a running mate that is younger and competent.
Speculations were rife on Thursday that the LP, would on Friday unveil Senator Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed as the running mate to Obi, the Presidential candidate of the party in the 2023 elections.
Senator Baba-Ahmed, is the Proprietor of Baze University, Abuja and Baba-Ahmed University Kano.
The unveiling of the vice presidential candidate was initially slated for Thursday to be done by the LP’s Presidential candidate at the party’s national secretariate, Abuja.
Vanguard however quoted the National Chairman of the party, Barrister Julius Abure as saying that the ceremony could not go ahead as planned because the Presidential candidate, who had traveled to Maiduguri and expected back in Abuja Thursday afternoon had his flight canceled.
Abure reportedly announced that the unveiling of Mr. Obi’s running mate was rescheduled for Friday, July 8 at the party’s headquarters, Abuja.