Former presidential spokesman Doyin Okupe said on Friday that his name has been submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the running mate of Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi in a ‘placeholder’ role.
Okupe, a former spokesman to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, said on Channels TV show, Politics Today, that he is ‘standing in’ as the vice-presidential candidate of the party.
According to him, this is in order for the party to meet up with the June 17 deadline issued by INEC for parties to submit the list of their candidates for the 2023 polls.
He said, “Choosing the vice presidential candidate is an electoral process and it does not stop until the process and schedule ends. INEC allows you to present a candidate and later on, if you want to substitute, you may do so, if necessary. But if it’s not necessary, you may as well continue.”
“I am willing to put down my back, so that young people can stand and come to the top,” he added.
Okupe, who is the director-general of Obi’s campaign organisation, followed him around when he was meeting with delegates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) while vying for the party’s ticket.
Obi is currently in Egypt where he said he will be studying several sectors of the north African country’s economy.
The former Anambra State governor resigned from the PDP shortly before the party’s national convention where former Vice President Atiku Abubakar won the ticket.
