• Kachikwu accuses coalition of hijack, alleges state chairmen got N20m to resign
• Why I opposed Atiku in 2023, by Ortom

A South-West socio-political group, Yoruba Ronu Leadership Forum and apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, have aired their views on the chances of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar or Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, unseating President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.

Yoruba Ronu declared that Atiku Abubakar and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) are now in a strong position to defeat Tinubu, urging Nigerians to look beyond ethnic and religious sentiments.

Reacting to Atiku’s resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Forum’s President, Akin Malaolu, described the move as “bold and strategic,” saying it signals the former Vice President’s readiness to fully capitalise on what he called the Tinubu administration’s administrative failures and worsening economic conditions.

“Tinubu squandered the goodwill he inherited from former President Muhammadu Buhari’s northern support base and the so-called 12 million ‘block votes.’ Atiku is now strategically positioned to step into that vacuum and reap what Tinubu failed to consolidate in 2023,” Malaolu said.

He criticised President Tinubu for applying a “Lagos and South-West mindset” to national politics, arguing that the approach alienated key northern stakeholders and weakened his alliance with figures such as Nasir El-Rufai and even his own Vice President, Kashim Shettima.

“Atiku’s exit from PDP is the final piece that could dismantle Tinubu’s hold on power,” Malaolu added. “The economic hardship, growing discontent in the North, and Atiku’s likely alliance with the ADC, backed by support from the South-South and Southeast, create a strong front that could sweep Tinubu out in 2027. What remains is for Peter Obi of the Labour Party to take a similar decisive step.”

While predicting a possible political upset, Malaolu also acknowledged that President Tinubu still has a narrow window to reclaim public confidence, but only if he tackles insecurity and Nigeria’s worsening economy head-on.

For its part, Ohanaeze Ndigbo warned the All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Tinubu not to focus their attention on Atiku’s involvement in the opposition coalition, but rather on Peter Obi.

In a statement issued in Abakaliki yesterday, the Deputy National President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, said Obi still commands overwhelming influence in the South-East. He warned that a repeat of the voting pattern witnessed during the last general election was likely in 2027 if President Tinubu failed to address insecurity in the region and release the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

He noted that the death of former President Muhammadu Buhari presents a challenge that demands strategic governance and unwavering focus, cautioning the Presidency against abandoning its constitutional duties for partisan politicking ahead of 2025.

Isiguzoro also stated that the opposition coalition, which includes Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Nasir El-Rufai and other key political figures, is strategically positioning itself to exploit the political vacuum left in the North by Buhari’s death.

He argued that Nigerians were not inclined towards electing an octogenarian in 2027, adding that Atiku, at 78, poses little threat to Tinubu’s re-election bid. According to him, “the political ascendancy of Mr Peter Obi presents a formidable challenge that the Presidency must address with renewed vigour and strategic recalibration.”

“Failure to adapt and respond effectively to the pressing needs of the nation—particularly in the realms of economic policy reform, national restructuring, infrastructural development, security enhancement, food security and mostly release of Kanu—will severely undermine President Tinubu’s prospects and give Obi an edge if he becomes a presidential ticket,” he said.

Isiguzoro stressed that Ohanaeze Ndigbo reiterates the urgent need for the Federal Government to address longstanding Igbo aspirations, including the establishment of a sixth South-East state, reopening of the Calabar seaports, completion of federal road projects, modernisation of railway infrastructure, and the unconditional release of Nnamdi Kanu.

Kachikwu accuses coalition of hijack
MEANWHILE, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Dumebi Kachikwu, has accused some politicians involved in the current coalition efforts of importing political corruption into the party, alleging that some state chairmen are being induced with large sums of money to relinquish their positions.

Speaking in Abuja yesterday, Kachikwu cautioned Nigerians against being deceived by claims that a coalition is adopting ADC as its platform, saying the development is part of a plot by a group of desperate political office seekers to hijack the party. He alleged that in their bid to fully take over the ADC, members of the coalition are “offering some of the state chairmen as much as N20,000,000 to resign their positions, which goes to show that their intentions are not honourable.”

“This fake coalition is staging events in different parts of the country, where they pay poor Nigerians to say they are decamping from other parties to the ADC,” Kachikwu said.

“This is the typical strategy of these old politicians, and we have had enough of it. They need to sing a new song. My question to this gang is this: if you succeed in paying off all the ADC party officials at state and local government levels to resign, what next?

“Our constitution still doesn’t allow you to assume those offices. This is the plain and simple truth. Your money will get you nowhere in the ADC.”
Kachikwu dismissed suggestions that he was being sponsored to destabilise efforts by patriotic Nigerians to use the ADC platform, describing the claims as “deliberate misinformation going on by these agents of destabilisation masquerading as a political coalition.”

He insisted that the motives of the recent joiners were questionable, distinguishing between a legitimate coalition and what he termed a political gang-up. He added that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s involvement exposed what he called underhanded plots behind the ongoing takeover attempt.

He blamed Atiku for allegedly destroying the Peoples Democratic Party by rejecting the power rotation principle, which he had supported in 2015. Kachikwu challenged Atiku to openly declare his position on zoning ahead of the 2027 presidential election if he wanted to be taken seriously.

“Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a man whose antecedents clearly show he doesn’t believe anyone from the southern part of Nigeria is deserving of being president of Nigeria, orchestrated this charade for his personal benefit,” he said.

“He almost truncated President Obasanjo’s return for a second term because he believed the seat was his. President Jonathan suffered the same fate, and then, after eight years of late President Buhari as President, the same Atiku believes it was morally right for him to be the presidential flag bearer of the PDP in the last presidential elections.

“This was most unjust and unfair and led to the current disintegration of that party. He is now using some charlatans to deceive former governor Peter Obi that only he, Atiku, has what it takes to win an election, because he can get the majority of the North to vote for him.

“This is most uncharitable. If the former Vice President says my assertions are not true and that all he wants is a better Nigeria, I then challenge him today to publicly declare that equity demands that the presidency should stay in the South for another six years.” Kachikwu maintained that as long as Atiku refused to embrace equity and fairness, he would continue to oppose any move to hijack the ADC.

“I want to reiterate that the ADC is not for sale and is not an old people’s home. We are a party that believes Nigeria needs fresh faces, fresh ideals and fresh ideas. This current political war is the war of the old for the old; it is not our fight,” he said.

Why I opposed Atiku in 2023, by Ortom
RELATEDLY, former Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has explained why he opposed the Peoples Democratic Party and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in the 2023 general elections.

Ortom, a prominent member of the G5 group of PDP governors, said the party’s failure to uphold the principles of equity, fairness, and justice was the reason they chose to stand against it.

Speaking on Arise TV yesterday, Ortom said the G5 had maintained that the presidency should rotate to the South after eight years of northern rule under former President Muhammadu Buhari. He said the PDP’s decision to field Atiku, another northerner, was contrary to that principle.

“I acted as I did because we had expected the PDP to uphold equity, fairness, and justice, values I hold dear. “When the majority of PDP members supported a northern candidate, we deemed it unjust. We’ve always stood for equity, fairness, and justice, and we felt the presidency should alternate between the North and South for eight years each,” he said.

Ortom, who served as chairman of the PDP’s zoning committee, noted that although the committee recommended an open contest, he personally advocated for a Southern candidate. He emphasised that the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) had the final say, which led to Atiku’s emergence as the candidate.

“I presented the committee’s report as it was, and the NEC made the final call. I couldn’t override the collective decision,” Ortom explained.