- Moves to Shore Up Support up North, Middle Belt, S’East
By Abiola Olawale
Former Vice President and the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has reportedly extended an olive branch to Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, offering him the vice-presidential slot in a potential 2027 coalition.
Atiku has also reportedly expressed the intention to serve only one term if elected president.
A report by the Punch newspaper revealed that the offer was made during a private meeting between Atiku and Obi in the United Kingdom earlier this year.
According to sources quoted by the report, the move was said to be part of a strategic effort to consolidate opposition votes and present a formidable challenge in 2027.
“Atiku and Obi met earlier this year in the UK. That was where Atiku first mooted the idea of a coalition and urged Obi to be his running mate. Obi then asked for time to think it over and consult his loyalists,” one source was quoted as saying.
Another insider confirmed, “But recent developments show that Obi has accepted to be Atiku’s running mate, and Atiku has also agreed to serve a single four-year term and hand over to the former Anambra State governor.
“They have both agreed to sign a written agreement if necessary. Obi is trying to get the buy-in of his loyalists before this is formally announced.”
The New Diplomat reports that this comes as Atiku has been actively pushing for a coalition to go against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the 2027 polls. Sources say the former vice president is pushing and shoring up his support base up North, Middle Belt and South East. Obi, on his part, is strong in the middle belt, South East, parts of South West especially Lagos and key parts of the North especially in the Middle Belt.
The former Vice President has been engaging in high-level meetings with key politicians, including former President Muhammadu Buhari and the immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, among others.
The reports also revived memories of the 2019 presidential election, when Obi was Atiku’s running mate under the PDP.
The pair lost that election to Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
