Opposition figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi, intensified efforts yesterday to forge a common political front capable of unseating President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 general elections.
Meeting under the banner of the National Political Consultative Group (North), the coalition of leaders gathered at the Abuja Continental Hotel to deliberate on the structure and format of the proposed alliance. Sources close to the talks suggested that, while progress has been made, no consensus has yet been reached on whether to adopt an existing political platform or register a new one.
Among those present were former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi; former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal; former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola (represented); PDP Board of Trustees Chairman, Senator Adolphus Wabara; ex-Cross River Governor Donald Duke; former Information Minister Professor Jerry Gana; and several northern stakeholders.
However, the high-level meeting was briefly marred by a commotion involving Jigawa State delegates. Tensions flared when Babachir Lawal introduced a delegate to speak on behalf of the state, a move that sparked immediate resistance. A group of Jigawa representatives stormed the stage, denouncing the appointment and demanding fair representation.
Security operatives from the Nigerian Police Force, the Department of State Services (DSS), and private personnel swiftly intervened, forming a protective shield around key figures including Atiku, Obi, and Amaechi to contain the situation. Calm was eventually restored, and Mustapha Lamido, son of former Jigawa governor Sule Lamido, was accepted as a compromise representative.
Debate within the coalition remains divided over the future platform. While some advocate for the registration of a new political party, others favor fusing into an existing one. A third faction calls for a broad alliance similar to that of the defunct Alliance for Democracy (AD) and All Peoples Party (APP), which once fielded a joint candidate.
Recall that Dr Umar Ardo, convener of the League of Northern Democrats (LND), recently affirmed his group’s alignment with the coalition and said it would “contribute to the dialogue on either registering a new political party as a vehicle to drive politics or fusing into an existing political party, whichever is agreed.”
He revealed that two committees had been established—one to assess the viability of registering a new party, chaired by former Rivers Governor Rotimi Amaechi, and the other, headed by ex-Cross River Governor Liyel Imoke, to explore merging with an existing party. Dr Ardo himself serves as secretary for both committees.
In his continued consultations, Peter Obi also met with northern leaders at the event and emphasized the strategic importance of Northern Nigeria in the country’s development.
“The north has voted for religion and tribe in the past; this is the time to vote for something else, a time to consider competence and capacity,” Obi stated.
Reflecting on his banking career, Obi said, “Kano, the commercial nerve centre of northern Nigeria was where people went for cash, but today, all the industries in Kano are gone.”
He further stressed the need for national unity built on mutual trust and dismissed ethnic and religious sentiments as obstacles to progress. Drawing parallels with agrarian nations like Bangladesh and the Netherlands, Obi noted that Northern Nigeria possessed even greater potential, but lacked “good governance, good policies and implementation.”
Former Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, also addressed the gathering and decried the insecurity plaguing the North. He urged stakeholders to rally around a new political platform aimed at rescuing the region.
Meanwhile, Dr Okey Nwosu, National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), announced that talks about the coalition’s final political structure would be concluded within “one or two weeks.”
He affirmed that the ADC had already been adopted by several coalition partners as the preferred platform for the 2027 race.
“ADC has started a process in the last 16 months, and what we have been doing is that beyond all the political talks about political leaders, we needed to touch the grassroots because the situation in the country will either one day call for citizen’s revolt or patriot’s coalition,” Nwosu declared.
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