Salihu Lukman, a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and convenor of G100, says opposition parties are making progress towards forming an alliance ahead of the 2027 general election.
In an interview with Channels Television aired on Friday,
Lukman said the group had made more progress than initially expected in
persuading political parties and presidential candidates to consider working
together to strengthen the opposition.
“Well, first, let me remind you that when we came together
as G100, our objective was to engage the political parties and their candidates
and get them to recognise the challenge,” he said.
“So far, the indicators are there; we have succeeded beyond
some of our expectations, and I’m sure the leadership of the parties will begin
to make public statements themselves to indicate the direction they are going.”
G100 is advocating cooperation among opposition parties to
strengthen their chances of challenging the ruling All Progressives Congress
(APC) in the 2027 elections.
Six opposition parties recently consulted five presidential
candidates as part of efforts to build an alliance ahead of the polls.
The consultations involved the national chairmen and
national secretaries of the ADC, Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Nigeria
Democratic Congress (NDC), Social Democratic Party (SDP), Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP).
The presidential candidates consulted were Atiku Abubakar of
the ADC, Seyi Makinde of the APM, Peter Obi of the NDC, Adewole Adebayo of the
SDP and Donald Duke of the PRP.
LUKMAN SAYS OPPOSITION MUST AGREE ON ONE CANDIDATE
The G100 convenor said opposition parties would struggle to
defeat the ruling party if their presidential candidates contested separately
and divided the opposition vote.
He said the success of a joint platform depended on the
level of trust among political parties and their candidates, arguing that they
needed to build relationships that would make them willing to sacrifice
individual ambitions.
“For us, unless that is addressed, all these issues about
coming up with a united front or a single candidate, we may not be able to
achieve it,” he said.
Lukman maintained that the opposition could still reach an
agreement, insisting that political leaders must recognise the consequences of
splitting their votes.
“There is no way this country can continue the way it is
today. Something just has to give,” he said.
He cited comments by John Onaiyekan, the former archbishop
of Abuja, who had warned that opposition candidates risked handing victory to
the ruling party if they divided their supporters among several candidates.
“There is no way opposition candidates will split people
five ways and expect one of them to win against a ruling party; they are just
basically handing over victory to the ruling party,” Lukman quoted Onaiyekan as
saying.
Lukman said he remained optimistic that the presidential
candidates would recognise the need to cooperate ahead of the election.
“I am positive, and I am very sure that all these candidates
are rational. They will accept all these and work together,” he said.
The ADC chieftain added that he had no personal ambition to
contest an election or seek an appointive office, saying his involvement was
driven by a desire to encourage political leaders to find common ground.
“My own personal benefit is not the issue,” he said, urging
opposition leaders to place the country’s interests above individual ambitions.
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