Kenneth Okonkwo Calls Peter Obi, Kwankwaso and Others “Renegades”

Veteran Nollywood actor and politician Kenneth Okonkwo has labeled prominent members of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC)—including Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso—as “renegades” for leaving the coalition movement, claiming they did so out of fear of contesting party primaries.

Speaking on Politics Today on Thursday, Okonkwo argued that political parties that zone their presidential tickets to the South are, in effect, supporting President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 election.

He said he had previously warned Nigerians against backing any party that claimed to be zoning to the South, asserting that such a strategy would ultimately benefit Tinubu.

Okonkwo dismissed the NDC as a splinter group from the ADC, describing its members as “mere renegades.”

He further accused Obi and Kwankwaso of abandoning the coalition after having previously portrayed it as the sole viable platform to defeat Tinubu in the next presidential election.

The former Labour Party chief also alleged that the politicians misled Nigerians, noting that their sudden departure from the coalition without explanation raises doubts about their political sincerity.

“I told Nigerians that any party that is telling you that it’s zoning to the South is working for Tinubu. And when they doubted me, immediately the PDP said they had zoned to the South. People came from the PDP and said, ‘Sorry, we are not going to bring out a presidential candidate.’ And now you said the NDC has zoned to the South. Recall that the NDC, they are mere renegades from the ADC,” Okonkwo said.

“The reason they went there is because they are scared of participating in primary elections. Maybe I was being too lenient. I will say they are political con men. Look at it this way, they came into the coalition, I am talking about Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso, on their own, and they said the coalition is the best and the only method to send President Bola Tinubu packing, by their own words. And on their own, without any reason, they left for the NDC. Is that not being a con man?” he added.