The three leading opposition figures in Nigeria are exploring a merger to address hunger and widespread insecurity ahead of the 2027 presidential election, according to a statement from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
PDP deputy national spokesman Ibrahim Abdullahi shared this on Channels Television’s *Sunrise Daily*.
He revealed that Atiku Abubakar of the PDP, Peter Obi of the Labour Party, and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) are considering putting aside personal interests to form a united front against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027.
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Abdullahi also noted that had past PDP leadership managed internal conflicts better, key figures like former Rivers State governor Nyesom Wike, Kwankwaso, and Obi might still be with the party, potentially leading to a victory over Bola Tinubu of the APC in the last election.
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.”
Asked if the PDP is trying 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.”
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In the 2023 presidential election, Bola Tinubu emerged victorious, winning in 12 of Nigeria’s 36 states and securing a substantial number of votes in several others.
Tinubu garnered a total of 8,794,726 votes, nearly two million more than his closest competitor, Atiku Abubakar of the PDP.
Atiku, who was running for president for the sixth time, received 6,984,520 votes.
Peter Obi, making his first presidential run, achieved an impressive 6,101,533 votes.
Rabiu Kwankwaso, the former governor of Kano State, finished fourth with 1,496,687 votes, winning his home state of Kano.
Notably, both Obi and Kwankwaso were members of the PDP prior to the election but left the party due to irreconcilable differences.
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Asked what would happen if Obi and the others returned to the PDP, he said, “One of them would concede for the other and then we would have a direction.
“Our concern as a party and to these people that I have mentioned is to ensure that we salvage Nigerians from this despair and despondency, between maladies of hunger and frightening insecurity in the land. You could see cluelessness and ineptitude on the part of these people managing this country.”
The PDP chieftain emphasized that addressing the current hardships faced by Nigerians is more crucial than the personal ambitions of the three leaders.
He said, “Atiku is saying if it is better for him to get Nigeria out of this hopelessness, he would do so.
“He (Atiku) must not be in the race. Atiku is saying that it is an entitlement to him as a democrat; the constitution provides for him that he could contest at any time.
“What he is trying to say is that (there) is no ceiling stopping him from contesting. That is his fundamental democratic right but he is not saying that he will force it on the throat of the party or the country.
“I am telling you clearly: Peter Obi is suitably qualified; he can aspire and we will support him if he gets the ticket. Atiku is suitably qualified and if he gets the ticket, we will rally behind him and give him the desired support to salvage Nigerians out of this situation.”
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