Claim: A Threads post claims that Peter Obi has stepped down from the 2027 Nigerian presidential race and endorsed Seyi Makinde for president.
Verdict: Misleading. Peter Obi did attend the inauguration of Seyi Makinde’s presidential campaign office in Abuja on September 7, 2026, and described Makinde as qualified to be president. However, Obi did not announce that he was withdrawing from the 2027 presidential race or endorsing Makinde in his place.
Full Text
A Threads user, @okufuwasamadd, claimed that Peter Obi had stepped down from the 2027 presidential race and endorsed Seyi Makinde, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Similar posts were made here, here, here, and here.
The post used a video from Arise News showing Obi at the inauguration of Makinde’s presidential campaign office in Abuja.
Verification
DUBAWA traced the event shown in the video to the inauguration of Seyi Makinde’s presidential campaign office in Abuja on September 7, 2026.
During the event, Peter Obi acknowledged Makinde’s presidential ambition and said:
“We have a candidate who is contesting the presidency today: my dear brother Seyi Makinde. Is he qualified to be president? Yes.”
However, Obi’s remarks did not amount to an announcement that he was withdrawing from the presidential race. Channels Television reported that Obi urged Nigerians to freely choose their preferred candidate and told opposition politicians to put aside their differences. The report also identified Obi as the NDC presidential candidate.
Vanguard similarly reported that Obi said whoever emerged victorious through a free, fair and credible election should receive the support of the other political leaders.
There is also stronger evidence that Obi had not stepped down. On September 8, Channels Television continued to identify him as the NDC presidential candidate. Similarly, on September 10, Arise News interviewed Peter Obi about a possible alliance or coalition, to which he responded, “I have a party behind my candidacy.”
On September 9, Peter Obi posted on his Official X (formerly Twitter) account that he was in Benue State for his own political campaign ahead of the 2027 presidential election. See also here.
Furthermore, Premium Times reported on September 10 that Obi was discussing policies he would retain if elected president in 2027, further contradicting the claim that he had withdrawn from the race.
DUBAWA further checked the Official X (formerly Twitter) account of Peter Obi and no such information is there, instead it has posts of his continued campaign and listed on his Bio is “NDC Presidential Candidate, 2027).
The video therefore appears to have been given a misleading caption. Obi’s attendance at Makinde’s campaign-office inauguration and his statement that Makinde is qualified to be president do not mean that Obi has withdrawn his own candidacy.
Conclusion
The claim is misleading. Peter Obi attended Seyi Makinde’s campaign-office inauguration and acknowledged that Makinde is qualified to become president, but he did not announce his withdrawal from the 2027 presidential race. Current reports continue to identify Obi as the NDC presidential candidate, and he remains actively campaigning for the 2027 election.