Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has said anyone who rigs elections under his government will go to prison. He made the comments at a party town hall in Nasarawa State on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, during a campaign visit that has also drawn a sharp response from the ruling party.

What Obi said

Asked what his party would do about rigging in 2027, Obi said that under his presidency INEC officials or anyone else who manipulated elections would be jailed. He said strengthening political parties and the electoral process would make rigging impossible, and that the law would apply equally to everyone, from the President to the ordinary citizen. He also proposed that candidates for public office should prove they attended primary and secondary school, with records open to public checks, and said anyone found to have forged certificates would face prison.

Keyamo's reaction

In a radio interview during the same visit, Obi argued that Nigeria would be much richer if public money had been kept in banks earning interest instead of being mismanaged. He also said the results of government projects should speak for themselves without ceremonies or television coverage. Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo seized on those comments in a post on X on Thursday, describing them in strongly mocking terms and saying he did not know whether to laugh or cry. He claimed the remarks explained what he described as a fall in Obi's popularity.

Background

Obi, a former Anambra governor, came third in the 2023 presidential election as the Labour Party candidate and is now running on the NDC ticket with Rabiu Kwankwaso as his running mate. Exchanges between his camp and senior APC figures have grown more heated since campaigns began this month, with both sides trading personal attacks online.

What happens next

Obi is expected to continue his tour of the North Central, while the APC campaign has indicated it will keep challenging his record in office.

An All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign rally in Malumfashi Local Government Area of Katsina State was reportedly disrupted on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, when a group of suspected thugs attacked party members and their vehicles.

What happened

According to reports, APC supporters had gathered to campaign for the party's candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections when the attackers arrived. They were said to be chanting a Hausa phrase meaning 'we do not agree' as they threw stones and other objects at the crowd. Several cars were damaged, with windscreens and windows smashed, and the attack reportedly caused panic among motorists and passengers in the area. Several people are said to have suffered minor injuries, although no exact number has been given.

Official response

The Katsina State Police Command had not commented on the incident at the time of the report, and no arrests have been announced. The APC has also not issued a public statement on who it believes was responsible.

Background

Katsina, the home state of the late former President Muhammadu Buhari, is an APC stronghold, but the 2027 contest in the North West is expected to be keenly fought, with the ADC, NDC and other parties also campaigning hard for votes. Campaigns for the 2027 elections formally began this month, and security agencies have repeatedly warned parties against using thugs. Similar clashes at rallies have been reported in other states in recent weeks.

What happens next

Observers are calling on the police to investigate and on all parties to restrain their supporters as campaigning intensifies across the North.

A pro-Tinubu campaign group led by former Niger Delta militant leader Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, has expanded into Imo State with a large show of campaign materials.

What happened

The PBAT Door-to-Door Movement inaugurated its Imo chapter on Tuesday, 27 October 2026, at the Ndubuisi Kalu Square in Owerri. The group presented 30 campaign vehicles, 30 generators, 60 public-address speakers and other materials for its work in the state. Tompolo was represented by Kestin Pondi, managing director of Tantita Security Services, the pipeline surveillance company linked to him.

What was said

Speaking for Tompolo, Pondi backed President Bola Tinubu's re-election and described the government's economic reforms as important for long-term development. Governor Hope Uzodimma praised the initiative and promised to work with the movement, saying the campaign should go directly to communities and explain government policies to residents across Imo's 27 local government areas. The administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Dennis Otuaro, and the movement's national coordinator, Sunday Asuku, were also present, along with APC leaders.

Background

The movement has been rolling out chapters across the country ahead of the January 2027 elections. The Owerri event came at a busy time for Uzodimma, who is also involved in a court fight over the APC's Imo West senatorial ticket and has rejected the Rainbow Coalition in the state.

Why it matters

The South East has been difficult ground for the APC in recent presidential elections, and the party is investing heavily to improve its showing there in 2027.

The political battle in Imo State has taken a dramatic turn after a Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that Governor Hope Uzodimma is not the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for the Imo West senatorial seat.

In a judgment delivered on Thursday, Justice Obiora Egwuatu held that Uzodimma did not win the party's May 18 primary for Imo West and that former governor Rochas Okorocha polled the highest votes. The court ordered INEC to recognise Okorocha and publish his name as the APC's candidate, and barred Uzodimma from presenting himself as the party's candidate.

Okorocha filed the suit in August, arguing that INEC's own monitors' reports showed him as the winner of the primary. His camp says he scored 150,780 votes to Uzodimma's 102,158, while the party's returning officer had declared Uzodimma the winner with 230,464 votes. Uzodimma and the APC had asked the court to throw out the case as filed too late.

It is not yet known whether Uzodimma or the APC will appeal.

The ruling raises fresh questions about the balance of power within Imo APC. It comes amid growing political tension involving Governor Uzodimma and FCT Minister Nyesom Wike over cross-party alliances and control of party structures ahead of the 2027 elections. However, there is no evidence that Wike had anything to do with the court's decision.

Is Hope Uzodimma gradually losing his grip on Imo politics, or is this just a temporary setback in the battle for 2027?