The three leading opposition figures in Nigeria are in talks on the possibility of a merger to rescue Nigerians from hunger and widespread insecurity ahead of the 2027 presidential political race, a spokesman for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) communicated.
PDP deputy national spokesman Ibrahim Abdullahi stated this on a televised show.
He said the three opposition candidates in the last election Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) would set aside personal interests and form a formidable coalition to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) come 2027.
Abdullahi said that had his party’s past leadership managed clashes well, high-ranking chieftains such as former Rivers State Lead Representative Nyesom Wike, Kwankwaso and Obi would still be full-blooded members of the PDP, and the party would have crushed Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last political race.
He said, “We’ve lost Kwankwaso, we’ve lost Peter Obi, all of these people, imagine if they are in the party, we will have gone to win the elections.
“This APC said they defeated us with one million plus (votes), just one of these names that I mentioned would have covered that gap for us and we would have been in power today and certainly Nigerians would not have been confronted with this despair and despondency in the land.”
Inquired as to whether the PDP is attempting to get Obi, Kwankwaso, Wike and others back into the party, Abdullahi said, “Sure, discussion is ongoing. You will see Peter Obi discussing with Atiku, you will see Peter Obi meeting with (Nasir) El-Rufai. Party management is a very difficult thing and we are doing the best in the quagmire that we have found ourselves. Rest assured, there would light at the end of the tunnel. We have learnt our lessons in a bitter way.”
In the 2023 presidential political race, Tinubu, came out tops in 12 of Nigeria’s 36 states, and tied down significant numbers in several other states to guarantee the highest number of votes – 8,794,726, nearly two million votes more than his closest rival – Atiku Abubakar of the PDP.
Atiku, who has contested for the presidency six times, got 6,984,520 votes, while Obi, a first-time contender, got an exceptional 6,101,533. Kwankwaso, former Kano State Lead Representative, came fourth, claiming victory in his state, Kano. He got 1,496,687 votes.
Interestingly, Obi and Kwankwaso were PDP members months before the last election but cited irreconcilable difference as reasons they left the party.
