Dons Eze
DOUBTS OVER ATIKU, OBI, KWANKWASO MERGER TALKS
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.
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.
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.
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 told DAILY POST 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 DAILY POST.
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, informed DAILY POST 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.”
