From Peter Obi Supporter to Tinubu Backer: Obidient Leader Mobilises South East for 2027
By Chukwuemeka Modilim
A prominent South East figure in the Obidient Movement, Mr. Ikenna Azomchine, has made a major political U turn, declaring support for President Bola Tinubu’s bid for a second term and urging Ndigbo to vote for the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the 2027 presidential election.
Azomchine, popularly known as “Obidient General,” said his decision followed what he described as the Tinubu administration’s growing attention to the Southeast through infrastructure projects and appointments of indigenes of the region into government.
Speaking to the ABS after touring communities in Nibo, Awka South Local Government Area, Azomchine said he had spent the past three years in opposition but came to the conclusion that the platform was not strong enough to secure the presidency for an Igbo candidate.
He therefore urged Ndigbo to move closer to mainstream politics, arguing that greater participation in the ruling political structure would improve the Southeast’s chances of producing a president of Igbo extraction in the future.
The former supporter of Peter Obi said he had previously criticised the Tinubu administration but was now acknowledging what he described as positive changes under the President.
He described Tinubu as a “detribalised Nigerian” and disclosed that the Obidient group had commenced a Southeast wide mobilisation campaign to secure massive votes for the President in 2027.
Another member of the group, Engineer Azubuike Chine, said the movement’s decision was based on what its members claimed to have seen from the Tinubu administration at the grassroots.
The development marks a striking political shift within a movement largely identified with Peter Obi, as former Obidient supporters increasingly reassess their political alignment ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
