- PDP Govs Reject Coalition But Ready To Wrest Power From Tinubu
- Momodu: Atiku, Obi, Kwankwaso Cannot Individually Unseat Tinubu
- PDP Chieftain Predicts Collapse Of Party If Atiku Gets Presidential Ticket
Ahead of the 2027 election, the purported coalition to wrestle power from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the ruling All-Progressives Congress (APC) seems to have suffered a massive blow.
One of the leading opposition parties previously expected to spearhead the coalition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), governors elected under the party’s platform under the aegis of the PDP Governors’ Forum, has disclosed that the party is not prepared to join any coalition or merger.
The resolution was made in a communique issued at the end of the Forum’s meeting held in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, on Monday.
READ ALSO: Uproar Over US Court’s Order To FBI, DEA To Release Tinubu’s Drugs Records
After the meeting which lasted about six hours behind closed doors, the Chairman of the Forum and Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, who read the communique clarified that rather, the PDP remains open to welcoming individuals, parties, and groups committed to rescuing Nigeria and promoting good governance,
The communique reads, “The Forum resolved that the PDP will not join any coalition or merger. However, as a major opposition party, it welcomes any party, persons, or groups willing to join it to wrest power and enthrone good leadership in 2027”.
Meanwhile, Dele Momodu, a former Presidential aspirant of the PDP has kicked against the decision of the PDP govs to oppose a coalition ahead of the 2027 elections saying they may secretly be working for President Bola Tinubu.
Speaking on Arise Television on Monday, Momodu said none of the leading opposition parties and their candidates can individually unseat Tinubu in 2027.
The PDP chieftain advised the opposition to unite and adopt the same tactics the APC used in 2015 to win the election.
“Opposition leaders are very determined this time around to work together. The truth of the matter is Atiku cannot do it alone, Peter Obi cannot do it alone, and Rabiu Kwankwanso cannot do it alone,” Momodu said.
“So, naturally, they have to find a way to pay APC back in its own coins by trying to get at least a chunk of all the parties, including the APC, to come together.
READ ALSO: 2027: Atiku, El-Rufai, Others’ Visit To Buhari Sparks Tension In Tinubu’s Camp
“If our governors are saying no, we don’t want to go into a coalition, then it means that surreptitiously you are probably working for a Tinubu presidency.
“People must learn from history; a bully only respects a bully, but all of us are already behaving like chickens. Anything, people panic, saying they are going to use the EFCC or arrest them.
“Any governor or any senator or house member who may be tempted to just jump ship may jump to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.”
According to him, it will not be easy to unseat Tinubu, who was a hard nut to crack even before he became president, let alone now that he is in power and has the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike on his side.
“Tinubu, who is already president, even when he was not president, we faced a lot of fire.
“Now, when you have Tinubu and Wike on one side, then it means you have to be battle-ready; you have to assemble all your weapons and be ready for the battle ahead because 2027 is going to be like the World Cup, and you need your best players.”
In a related development, a member of the Board of Trustees of the PDP, Chief Bode George, had predicted the death of the party if former Vice President Atiku Abubakar secures the party’s 2027 presidential ticket.
“If he (Atiku) picks it (PDP’s ticket), that is the end of this party. If he picks it by manipulation, which was what was done the last time, we will not accept it,” the octogenarian said on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Monday.
The PDP BoT member said Atiku has not shown himself to be a leader of the party because he has not waded into the intra-party squabbles that have befallen the party in recent times.
“No, if he is the leader of the party, he would have waded into it (the crisis),” George said. “The fact that he was the presidential candidate of the party at the last election doesn’t mean he is a bona fide, fixated leader of the party. If he’s running for his private interest, it’s different from the interest of the party.”
