There’s an indication that the much discussed merger talk among the trio of Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and Rabiu Kwankwaso, which will see the opposition united against the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, might not sail through after all.
The sign emerged recently after Kwankwaso, presidential
candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP, in the last general
election, declared he will win the 2027 presidential election.
Recall that the NNPP leader made the outburst when he
recently inaugurated the party’s secretariat in Katsina State.
He was also in the State for a condolence visit to the
Yar’Adua family over the death of their matriarch, Hajiya Dada, the mother of
late President Umaru Yar’adua.
The former Kano state Governor, who had been courted as a
beautiful bride by both Atiku and Obi, maintained that his party, NNPP, is
ready to take over the presidency, states and other positions across the
country come 2027.
In addition to his declaration, Kwankwaso claimed that the
Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is already dead, and had gone out of the line.
“I wish to remind you that Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is
already dead, because we were in the party, since they have gone out of the
line, we decided to check out,” he said.
Prior to Kwankwaso’s outburst, the PDP had announced that key
opposition leaders were exploring a merger to challenge the APC in the 2027
elections.
Recall also that Ibrahim Abdullahi, PDP’s Deputy National
Publicity Secretary, made this known while speaking on Channels Television’s
Sunrise Daily programme.
Abdullahi confirmed that Atiku, Obi, and Kwankwaso were
discussing a potential alliance.
He lamented that the party lost by over one million votes,
adding that if Kwankwaso or Obi had remained with the party, “We could have
closed that gap and avoided the current political and economic hardships.”
“Sure. Discussion is ongoing. You’ve seen Peter Obi
discussing with Atiku. You’ve seen Peter Obi meeting with El-Rufai,” Abdullahi
said, adding that his party was working to bring Obi, Kwankwaso, and other leaders
that had left back into the PDP.
“One of them will concede for the others, and then we will
have a direction. Our concern as a party and to these people that I have
mentioned is to salvage Nigerians from these despair and despondency—the two
maladies of hunger and poverty and frightening insecurity in the land.
“You could see cluelessness and ineptitude on the part of
those managing the country. And to these people (Atiku, Obi, and Kwankwaso),
salvaging Nigeria out of it is more important than their individual ambitions,”
he added.
Recall that before the 2023 general election, the PDP
presidential candidate, Atiku, had, in an interview with the BBC, given a hint
of a possible alliance with Obi and Kwankwaso but it never happened.
In addition, there was also a failed talk over an alliance
between Peter Obi (LP) and Rabiu Kwankwaso (NNPP), on the other hand.
Speaking in an interview with News Central Television, which
aired on Thursday, Obi said he’s not desperate to become Nigeria’s President.
He said he would only agree to work together with others if
he sees people who can do the work better.
According to him, he will not join just anybody for the
purposes of state capture or for winning elections.
Obi’s words: “Quite frankly, for me, I am not desperate to
be Nigeria’s President. I am desperate to see Nigeria work.
“If I see people who can do the work better, I will. I have
even heard people who are saying I should not come out in 2027, and I said to
them ‘offer yourselves, then we will put everybody on a scale. If they are
better, I will vote for them.”
When asked if he will stay with the Labour Party if he’s
contesting in the next election, Obi said: “Yes, I will be here, and if any
person is coming for us to negotiate or come together, he must tell me for what
purpose.
“I will not join anybody for state capture or for winning an
election. I want anybody to tell me how we are going to make sure that no child
is left behind; how we are going to put those millions of out-of-school
children back in school; and how we are going to create jobs.
“We must first of all establish what we are going to achieve
by coming together.
Collaboration shouldn’t be for just state capture and
continue with the same consumption. If it’s a collaboration for production, we
will.”
On whether he will say yes to Kwankwaso joining him as
collaborators, the former Anambra state Governor answered: “We want to
dismantle the two biggest jobs in Nigeria. Anybody who wants to move the
country from consumption to production; anybody who wants to pull people out of
poverty, who wants to bring out-of-school children into school, we will say
yes, yes.”
Meanwhile, a chieftain of the PDP, Barr. Ray Nnaji disclosed
in an interview that it’s a good idea if they (Atiku, Obi, Kwankwaso) could
actually agree, especially Obi and Atiku, who he said had run on one ticket in
a past election.
However, Nnaji, a former National Auditor of the PDP, said
he’s not foreseeing the possibility of the leader of the NNPP, Kwankwaso, who
he described as President Tinubu’s friend, agreeing to work with Atiku Abubakar
and Peter Obi.
The PDP chieftain explained that an alliance among the trio
could only be possible on the basis that Kwankwaso would be given the
opportunity to be the presidential candidate.
Nnaji said: “This alliance has been something actually
advocated for even when they were contesting the 2023 election. I was saying
that most especially, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and the Labour Party,
LP, will actually beat the All Progressives Congress, APC.
“That of the New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP, the
possibility of coming into alliance… because Rabiu Kwankwaso believed he can
actually win the election, even when he’s controlling only Kano.
“Though Kano has a very big and relative population, that
alone cannot give him the presidency. And knowing fully well that Kwankwaso and
President Tinubu they are all friends, I am not foreseeing the possibility of
Kwankwaso coming together with Atiku Abubakar to form an alliance, except on
the basis that Kwankwaso will be given the opportunity to be the presidential
candidate, which I don’t know the possibility of that happening.
“Atiku and Obi have run together before and they defeated
the APC. If not that Buhari saw it coming, that was why he removed Walter
Onnoghen, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, from office through an
exparte order because he knew quite alright that the matter will end up in the
Supreme Court, and with Onnoghen at Supreme Court, he was not sure of winning
the case.
“That’s why he made every effort and removed Onnoghen and
brought in his brother, Tanko, who actually made sure that the intention of bringing
him did not fail.”
He continued: “If they are talking about merging now, like I
just said, I am not foreseeing Kwankwaso coming into alliance with Atiku and
Obi, except the offer of being the President is given to Kwankwaso.
“I’m not his spokesman and I haven’t talked with him, but
his body language has shown that. And you know quite well, if Obi will agree to
run with Atiku or have an alliance, the problem will be who actually becomes
the candidate, and on which platform.
“If Obi accepts, you know he was formerly of the PDP but
left because of Wike. Obi has been able to surprise all bookmakers. Even
myself, I never gave him the chance he’s going to make it.
“So, if they can come together, what we have seen now is
that the populace are even tired of the ruling party, because instead of things
getting better, it’s getting worse.
“The ruling party (APC) is not even prepared to proffer
solutions to the problem. It’s a very big problem and right thinking people
should know what to do.
“If you compare what’s happening now to what actually caused
the PDP to lose the election, you will find out that the APC has not justified
why it’s an alternative to the PDP since 2015.
“It’s a good idea if they can actually agree, especially
between Obi and Atiku who had run on one ticket before.
“But this time around, if an alliance is going to take
place, it’s no longer going to be a situation where Atiku will be the one
endorsing Obi. It will now be three equal parties because if you look at the
scores, you will find out that Obi did the best.
“He’s not a push over. Therefore, it will be an arrangement
of two equals, although the Labour Party has only one state, PDP has about 13
states. That will be the only thing to make sure that the APC is dislodged. If
not, it will be very difficult, knowing the mentality of our people.”
Speaking also about the matter, Dr Yunusa Tanko,
ex-spokesman and media director of the defunct Labour Party Presidential
Campaign Organisation, said the issue about the talk of merger and alliance was
a continuous discussion.
Tanko, the Interim National Coordinator of Obidient
Movement, made this known in an interview with Dailypost
He explained that no definite position on that matter had
been taken even though people were still talking to each other.
“The issue about the talk of merger and alliance is a
continuous discussion. There’s no definite position on that matter but people
are talking to each other.
“It’s very imperative that people understand the need for
combined efforts of people who will be aligning on the same matter of good
governance and ensuring that they take over power from these people. So people
are talking to each other while they are consolidating their base.
“There’s no issue of doubting anybody’s sincerity. The truth
about this is that either you’re in it or you’re not. If you feel there’s a
need for collaboration, nobody will need to force you into it,” Tanko said.
On his part, the Kano State Chairman of the NNPP, Hashimu
Dungurawa, disclosed that it’s only the situation in the nearest future that
will warrant what will happen.
Dungurawa stated that his leader, Kwankwaso is a very
friendly person and is not in a quarrel with anybody.
According to him, Kwankwaso wants things to be done rightly
in Nigeria, insisting he wants true leaders that will manage the affairs of the
country.
He said: “You see in politics, things don’t just happen like
that. It’s only the situation in context that will warrant what will happen,
whether Mr A is going to work with Mr B or Mr C.
“It’s only time that will determine that. You can’t preempt
what has not happened or arrived.
It’s only when the time comes that people can only say what
will happen. This is just a rumor.
“Our leader, Rabiu Kwankwaso is a very friendly person. He’s
not in a quarrel with anybody.
“He wants things to be done rightly in Nigeria and he wants
true leaders that will manage the affairs of this country. That’s what he’s
fighting for.
“He is the only person that’s not decamping to the
ruling-government party. But many politicians in the country, they used to dump
the opposition party and join the ruling party because they are after
themselves.
“But when they formed APC, when they formed PDP, he was a
governor there. They misbehaved, he moved to the APC that wasn’t in the
government.
“When they formed the government of APC, APC started
misbehaving, he went back again to the PDP. And the same PDP repeated its
mistake, that’s why he joined the NNPP.
“By the grace of Allah, he produced a governor and many
members of the National Assembly, including senators.
“That’s why he is different from others, that are more of
prostitute politicians. Many of them are crossing from the opposition to the
government party. And Kwankwaso’s own is not like that.
“You see, what’s happening in the country is well familiar
and known to everybody. That party called APC has a logo of broom.
“The broom has now turned to a stick, and it’s hitting
everyone. Everybody is receiving its consequences.
“The PDP that you mentioned has an umbrella as logo, it has
now turned to a mad tiger that is biting everybody.
“It doesn’t even have leadership today. So, people are ready
to come and work with NNPP.
“We are the one to make this country great and everyone
happy, if we are given the chance in 2027.”
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