2027 Poll: Opposition political leaders plotting new party to defeat Tinubu, says Lukman

Opposition political leaders, including alienated All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders, have commenced negotiations towards producing an alternative political platform aimed at defeating President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 poll.

The immediate past APC National Vice Chairman North West, Dr Salihu Lukman, in a New Year message titled, “Political Competition Should Define New Nigeria,” charged Nigerians to rise to the challenge and make the defeat of APC and President Asiwaju not only possible in 2027 but, most importantly, guarantee the election of truly democratic leaders and not emperors.

Lukman, who resigned his membership from the APC last year, however, did not mention opposition figures involved in the talks to form a new political party.

Lukman argued that the only way that could be possible is if Nigerians are able to focus on producing a functional political party that will respect its own rules, distinctively different from APC, PDP, LP, NNPP, and all the existing registered political parties in the country.

Expressing concern that most Nigerian politicians are not disposed to a competitive political culture, he reminded opposition leaders that as long as they also approach the process of leadership selection in the country based on a strategy to impose themselves, they are also part of Nigeria’s problem.

The Kaduna-born politician remarked that once the majority of Nigerians concede politics as the monopoly or exclusive vocation of so-called politicians, the risks of undermining political competition and producing bad leaders with the attendant consequences of remaining in a permanent state of misery, disbelief, and negativity will be high.

He added that Nigerians need to move into 2025 with a positive disposition that it is indeed possible to produce a new political reality in the country, adding it is indeed possible to produce a political party that can guarantee political competition in Nigeria as the basis for leadership selection at all levels.

He noted: “It is possible to rebuild democratic structures in the country, including political parties, and get them to challenge political leaders in Nigeria to produce their positive side and put the nation on the roadmap of joining the comity of developed nations. It is possible for Nigeria to rise in our lifetime and produce political leaders who will be a source of pride to citizens.

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“Through the right political alignments, re-organization, and new refreshing initiatives, our resourcefulness, productivity, and innovative disposition will be the new defining orientation for a new Nigeria. As a nation, the search for happiness, belief in our capacity to have all the goodness life can guarantee, and above all, produce a positive disposition that should define our orientation. This has capacitated us to overcome our challenges, which endowed us to remain resilient and survive all odds.

“Like in past cases, Nigerians will survive current challenges. The same way Nigerians outlived military rule, we shall outlive this era of emperors and, in 2025, produce a truly democratic political party, which could guarantee internal political competition as the foundation for the restoration of national political competition.

“Through political competition, Nigeria shall produce truly democratic leaders in 2027 who will render selfless services to Nigerians, based on which the country can achieve all its national potentials.”