Bolaji Abdullahi, national publicity secretary of the
African Democratic Congress (ADC), says the position taken by Peter Obi,
presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), may threaten
the proposed coalition of opposition parties ahead of the 2027 elections.
Abdullahi spoke on Tuesday during an appearance on Daybreak,
an AriseTV programme, while explaining why Atiku Abubakar, the ADC presidential
candidate, was absent from the G100 opposition summit in Abuja on Monday.
The summit brought together leaders of six opposition
political parties — the ADC, Allied Peoples Movement (APM), NDC, Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and Social Democratic
Party (SDP).
The opposition coalition seeks to birth a “government of
national competence” that would operate for a single four-year transition term
after the 2027 general election.
Some presidential candidates, including Donald Duke of the
PRP and Adewole Adebayo of the SDP, were present at the event.
However, Atiku and Obi, widely regarded as major opposition
contenders in the next presidential election, were absent, raising questions
about the viability of the proposed merger.
In the past week, both men have taken different positions on
petrol subsidy. While Atiku has insisted on restoring the subsidy, Obi said he
would maintain its removal, arguing that mismanagement of the subsidy gains is
not enough reason to reverse the policy.
Meanwhile, Atiku, Obi and several other key opposition
figures had formed a coalition in July 2025 and adopted ADC as the political
platform to wrest power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in
2027.
However, the coalition talk failed to materialise, leading
to the defection of Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso, his running mate, to the NDC.
DISAGREEMENT ON SUBSIDY
Abdullahi said the disagreement on subsidy policy could
undermine the basis of the fresh coalition agenda.
“That’s something the promoters of this coalition will have
to address. If Peter Obi doesn’t believe in the return of subsidy while we do,
then what would be the basis for a merger?” Abdullahi asked.
He said the ADC was ready to cooperate with other parties
that support its position on subsidy.
“For us, it’s non-negotiable. Our economists are examining
the numbers in detail, and we’re convinced this is something we should pursue,”
Abdullahi said.
He said the ADC firmly backs the G100 coalition move, but
noted that supporting the initiative does not mean the party cannot defeat the
incumbent on its own.
“I agree with the objective that when opposition parties
come together, they stand a better chance. But for us in the ADC, this
conversation is not dependent on producing a single presidential candidate,” he
said.
“We believe we can defeat President Bola Tinubu in 2027 on
our own. If we’re able to negotiate this cooperation, it simply makes the job
easier.”
WHY ATIKU WAS ABSENT
Abdullahi said Atiku was absent at the G100 summit because
the meeting was focused on cooperation among political parties rather than
individual candidates.
“The summit, the way we understand it, is more about
conversations between political parties than between candidates. It’s about
exploring opportunities for cooperation among political parties,” he said.
“So it’s not consequential that Atiku Abubakar was not
present. I was there, the party was highly represented. We had about four
vice-chairmen at the G100 summit. ADC was fully represented and participated in
the process.”
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