Political economist, Prof Pat Utomi; 2023 presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party and former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; his counterparts in the Labour Party, Peter Obi; and the New Nigeria People’s Party, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, have commenced discussion with other stakeholders for a possible merger to wrest power from the All Progressives Congress in 2027.
The National Secretary of the Coalition of United Political Parties, Peter Ameh; Utomi, and media aide to the former Vice President, Paul Ibe, disclosed this to Sunday PUNCH.
But, the APC Director of Publicity, Bala Ibrahim, described opposition leaders’ latest move as an effort in futility, boasting that the ruling APC would deliver its Renewed Hope promises so well that Nigerians would choose the party again in 2027.
Atiku first broached the idea of the merger of opposition parties to displace the APC from power in 2027 shortly after the Supreme Court affirmed President Bola Tinubu as the winner of the 2023 presidential election.
The 77-year-old Atiku hinted that he was not retiring from politics and pledged his readiness to continue to shape the democratic discourse.
The former Kano and Anambra State governors (Kwankwaso and Obi) have both hinted that they will contest the 2027 presidential election on the platforms of the NNPP and LP respectively.
Recently, the spokesman for the 2023 LP Presidential Campaign Council, Yunusa Tanko, said Nigerians were tired of Atiku and others from the “old stock.”
When asked whether Obi would contest the 2027 election, he said, “That one is sure. There is no ambiguity on that.”
Explaining what they are planning, the leader of National Consultative Front, Utomi, in an exclusive interview with Sunday PUNCH, said their goal was to set up a new political party distinct from the kind of political parties currently in the country.
He revealed that the inaugural all-inclusive stakeholders’ meeting would be held at the end of January.
He stated, “Since 1999, what most political parties have are hurriedly put together. That is what is affecting Nigeria today.
“What we are working on is to build a real political party that has a clear set of ideas about how to solve social problems; you can call it ideology if you want. They have certain values that anybody who they recruit must have or grow into.
“It is not going to be like the rent-seeking arrangement for the powerful that turned Nigeria into the poverty capital of the world with many more people falling into multi-dimensional poverty. So, when we put all of this in place, we will invite people who subscribe to those values.”
On those who have shown commitment to this, Utomi said, “Among the many people that I am talking to are the opposition presidential candidates in the 2023 elections. Yes, I have talked with Atiku Abubakar, and I have talked with Obi and Kwankwaso. They are generally disposed; they just want to see that there’s a level playing field. And they will subscribe to our values for us to work together.
Utomi continued, “We are going to have a new political party different from what we have today. We will come up with modalities to ensure that these people don’t come and insist that they must be candidates.
“We are going to have a meeting soon, and the public will get to know the outcomes of the meetings. What is most important is that by next week, we will call for 10,000 volunteers per state to be community organisers, to begin by organizing communities to solve their problems and also become the base for the new structure of the political movement.
“We will have an all-inclusive political stakeholders meeting. We will have one this January, towards the end of the month, where we will sit down with all these fellows just essentially to outline what everybody has to reflect on”.
Speaking to our correspondent, Atiku’s media aide, Ibe, corroborated Utomi that the merger conversation had begun, stressing that Atiku viewed a formidable coalition as the most viable option to wrest power from the APC.
Ibe said, “The major bulk of the coalition of the opposition political parties will be done behind closed doors; it will not be done in the open. I can assure you that they have started the process. The principal partners and stakeholders in this coalition are already talking among themselves. So, it is ongoing.”
He said Atiku’s analysis was that the disunity of the opposition parties gave the APC victory in the last presidential poll.
“If they (opposition parties) harmonised their strength, they would be very formidable. This is important because Nigeria is at a crossroads. From one rumbling APC administration to another, nothing has changed. People are suffering, the economy is in shambles, and insecurity is at its peak.
“So, Atiku recognises how important it is for the opposition to come together and form a formidable front against the APC.”
CUPP, a group comprising seven political parties; the PDP, NNPP, African Democratic Congress, Allied Peoples Movement, Democratic Party, Young Progressives Party, and Zenith Labour Party, said they were part of the conversation.
The National Secretary of CUPP in an exclusive interview with Sunday PUNCH said they would not reveal their 2027 presidential candidate so as not to discourage parties involved in the merger conversation.
On who the candidate would be, he said, “In our last meeting, we agreed that it is important not to name somebody at the moment, because when we name a person, it will discourage others. So, we will not name anybody so that everybody will have that sense of collectivism.
Ameh continued, “At the right time, we will now sit down and analyse popularity, public acceptance, ability to proffer solutions to our problems, and the competence and merits that will determine the selection process before we take that decision. But who will need is somebody that must be accepted by all coalition partners.”
“Pat Utomi has contacted most 2023 opposition presidential candidates; they have been briefed and discussion is ongoing. I assure you a meeting is coming up very soon. We will meet with Professor Pat Utomi this week, then at a very short possible time, stakeholders will meet.”
However, checks by Sunday PUNCH showed that most political parties were not involved in the merger discussion as an institution, their presidential candidates and members are.
Recall that the LP recently dismissed discussions about a possible merger with PDP and other political parties.
When contacted, PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, said, “We are not involved in any merger, we have not been contacted. When we are contacted and if there will be, we will let the public know”.
Also, NNPP National Secretary, Oladipupo Olayokun, disclosed to Sunday PUNCH that “Our party is not aware and not part of any merger discussion”.
But reacting, the APC Director Publicity, Ibrahim, boasted that no party, including the coalition, could unseat the ruling party in 2027.
Ibrahim, in a phone interview with our correspondent, said the APC was not afraid of the opposition but welcomed any coalition that would help deepen democracy in Nigeria.
