A solid coalition of the nation’s main opposition political parties is necessary to overthrow the ruling All Progressives Congress, or APC, according to some change advocates who want President Bola Tinubu ousted in 2027.
This came after Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate for the Labour Party (LP), and Rabiu Kwankwaso, the rival of Obi of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), recently declared that the alleged merger negotiations between major parties were a hoax.
According to certain sources, Obi, Kwankwaso, and former PDP vice president Atiku Abubakar had decided to join forces against the incumbent party in order to establish an alliance before 2027.
According to the article, Kwankwaso agreed that Peter Obi would serve as president of Nigeria for eight years, while he and Atiku would each serve for four.
However, Kwankwaso refuted the alleged agreement in an interview with BBC Hausa, stating that the circumstances of the last elections should force some leaders to abstain from any activities pertaining to candidate selection.
Some northerners “who declared themselves as the leaders of the north” ought to let the people elect the president they truly want, he said.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday, Obi also clarified that he and any opposition figure had not entered into a merger agreement.
However, the former governor encouraged all patriotic Nigerians, particularly those in the opposition parties, to think about uniting in 2027 to overthrow the administration of President Bola Tinubu.
No opposition party can solely defeat APC except they all come together – PDP chieftain
Inspired by the remarks, Mathias Adache, a PDP chieftain in Benue South, told reporters on Saturday that a strong coalition of the three main opposition parties was necessary to bring about the eagerly awaited change of administration.
In his opinion, “there is no way the PDP or Labour Party can defeat Tinubu in 2027 if they don’t come together. They tried this thing individually in 2023 but it didn’t work for us, so what magic do they want to do in 2027?
“There is power in unity, until we unite against our common enemies, we may never get out of this mess.
“Greediness is the problem with some of our politicians. Instead of having the interest of the nation at heart, they are being sponsored by their selfish interests.
“Someone like His Excellency Atiku Abubakar should not be talking about contesting for presidency in this country again if he really has the interest of the nation at heart. I expected him to organize the opposition parties and be their leader.
“Don’t be surprised if you hear that the ruling party is behind the confusion we have here and there, otherwise, how difficult is it for these people to come together and sack the APC?
“The truth is that APC knows that the moment these opposition figures are able to reach agreement, their tenure will be over.
“They know this because it was the same strategy that brought them into power in 2015. Without the alliance of other parties, only ACN as it was then, could not have removed former president Jonathan.
“Their greatest nightmare is if PDP, LP and NNPP come together. But they will spend billions to make sure it never happens.”
Lack of unity between opposition parties gave Tinubu victory in 2023 – Ternenge
Henry Ternenge, a prominent member of the Labour Party, claims that the present government’s formation in 2023 was caused by the opposition parties’ disintegration.
In his opinion, “the opposition will always find elections difficult as long as we continue to operate a multi-party system.
“No matter the rigging, this illegitimate government wouldn’t have emerged in 2023 if we only had one opposition party.
“In that 2023 election, Atiku scored over 6.9 million votes, Peter Obi got 6.1 million votes and Kwankwaso also scored 1.4 million votes then Tinubu who won the election got 8.7 million votes.
“This tells you that Tinubu didn’t win the majority of votes cast. If you sum Atiku, Obi and Kwankwaso’s votes, you will have over 14 million votes.
“This means 14 million people voted against Tinubu, while only 8 million voted for him.
“He was able to win because the 14 million votes were divided. If it was a two-party system as we have in the US and other countries, Tinubu wouldn’t have won that election.
“I expected that by now, these opposition figures would have teamed up and started preparing to remove this APC but they are not ready.
“I read somewhere where the ruling party said that no magic would make Tinubu lose the election in 2027. They are saying this because they know that these people cannot come together”.
No automatic ticket for Peter Obi – LP insists
The Labour Party, meanwhile, has maintained that Peter Obi, the former governor of Anambra, will not receive an automatic ticket.
After being identified by the PDP, the largest opposition party, Obi was elected as the party’s flagbearer in 2023.
This time, the party is adamant that candidates run for the governorship, the presidency, and other offices.
“No political party gives automatic tickets, all positions are up for contest,” Obiora Ifoh, the party’s national publicity secretary, stated in an interview with reporters on Saturday.
