Labour Party has confirmed that no aspirant will receive an automatic ticket for the 2027 elections, stressing that even former presidential candidate Peter Obi must participate in competitive primaries if he returns to the party.

Obiora Ifoh, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, spoke to The Punch amid rising speculation over Obi’s political plans and his strained relationship with the Julius Abure-led leadership.

Ifoh said the party is open to reconciliation with Obi and other dissatisfied members but emphasized that its democratic processes cannot be compromised.

“The Labour Party has consistently stated that all tickets will be decided at the party’s convention. Every candidate must emerge through a democratically convened process. There is no automatic ticket for anyone, whether presidential, governorship, or chairmanship aspirants,” he said.

He also noted that Obi has kept his distance from the leadership over the past year.

“Obi’s position in the Labour Party can only be clarified by him. Nobody can speak on his behalf. Over the last year, he has had limited engagement with the current leadership, and we accept that. Many others have also not been actively involved,” Ifoh added.

Regarding why the recent NEC meeting did not discuss Obi, he explained that the session focused on initiating congresses and primaries.

“The NEC meeting was aimed at launching our congresses, which have been successfully conducted. In Abia State, we respected a court injunction. Primaries in Ekiti State are complete, and similar exercises will soon take place in Osun. INEC monitored the process and provided codes to upload our candidates. Everything is progressing well, and we are confident of achieving our goals ahead of 2027,” he said.