Without equivocation, I can say it for free that the 2027 presidential election is certainly not for the former Vice President and the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election, Atiku Abubakar. Going by the extant power sharing principle between the North and South, which commenced in 1999, the presidency is still for the South in 2027. It is after eight years of the presidency in the South that the likes of Atiku Abubakar, should be thinking of presenting themselves for the most important position in the land, if they are not tired of vying for the presidency. Atiku and co should indeed wait for 2031 when the presidency will return to the North again.
There are strong indications that the recent visits by Atiku Abubakar to notable Nigerian leaders in the North cannot be divorced from his political ambition in 2027. Atiku had visited Generals Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar in Minna, Niger State, in a move many considered to be connected with his presidential ambition in 2027 and possibly take over power from the South, against the existing power sharing agreement between the North and South. He had also visited former President Muhammadu Buhari in Daura, Katsina State, in furtherance of his political ambition.
In a recent interview with Sunday Sun, human rights activist and politician, Senator Shehu Sani, underscored these clandestine moves to push Tinubu away in 2027, among other things of national importance. The outspoken senator also adduced several reasons why power should remain in the South in 2027. Senator Sani holds the view that the South should be allowed to finish its eight years before power will return to the North in 2031. And what he said is the truth, which is immutable. I hope that Atiku Abubakar should heed the advice of Shehu Sani and other well-meaning Nigerians on this vital issue which borders on the unity and the future of the country. The unity and future of Nigeria should not be toyed with because of one man’s inordinate ambition to rule the country.
What Atiku and co are doing now is what they should have done before the 2023 presidential poll, where he came second. If Atiku had believed that power should shift to the South after eight years of Buhari, he wouldn’t have presented himself as a presidential candidate in that election. Supporting the power shift to the South mantra would have made the PDP a party to beat in the 2023 general election. But the PDP jettisoned it based on self-serving reasons. Even former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State, one of the Southern governors who met in Asaba and signed accord that power must shift to the South after eight years of Buhari, later became the Vice Presidential candidate of the PDP in the 2023 poll.
While the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) worked for power shift to the South and supported Bola Tinubu for the election, the opposition PDP, which many tipped to stand a good chance for the poll, became a divided house after their divisive primaries in which Atiku emerged as the party’s standard bearer. Former governor of Rivers State and now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, felt highly betrayed and formed the PDP G5 Governors or Integrity Group, comprising himself, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu State), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Samual Ortom (Benue State), and Seyi Makinde (Oyo State). These five governors refused to support the candidature of Atiku Abubakar. While some of them supported Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP), others supported Bola Tinubu of APC.
There is no doubt that the movement of Peter Obi to the LP and the influence of the G5 Governors or the Integrity Group led by Nyesom Wike gave the presidency to Tinubu. Imagine giving the PDP the votes Peter Obi got as LP candidate in the 2023 poll. By reneging on the power rotation agreement between the North and the South, the opposition PDP has shot itself on the left leg. It has lost the entire block vote from the South-East region as well as other Southern states. Peter Obi’s LP has taken that position for now but should also not be taken for granted.
Wike should be commended for forming the G5 Governors and helping to let power shift to the South. Now that Atiku is at his game of thwarting the power rotation arrangement again, I think the likes of Wike and co will not allow him to have his way. If he didn’t succeed in 2023, he cannot make it in 2027. If the divided opposition could not dislodge the Jagaban when he had never entered Aso Rock, is it when he has become the landlord that they will push him away. It is going to be a very difficult task, which cannot be accomplished. I really don’t know why Nigerian politicians are highly obsessed with the next election, instead of being engrossed with how to improve the quality of life of millions of Nigerians and how to enthrone a system that works for everyone.
Instead of thinking for the next election, let Atiku Abubakar be thinking of how to build a virile and formidable opposition. He should stop the nocturnal visits and start rebuilding the tattered PDP. The opposition is presently weak and impotent. The new face of opposition parties should stop moving from Dubai to London and America and stay at home to build and nurture one formidable political party as the Jagaban had done. They should study how the APC was born from the so-called strange bed-fellows, which later metamorphosed into a strong political party that pushed the then political behemoth, PDP, from power in 2015, the first time in Nigerian history that an opposition party will win the central government and the sitting president conceded defeat and readily congratulated the winner.
The PDP ruled Nigeria for a little over 16 years and even boasted to rule first for 60 years and later 100 years before its downfall. APC has ruled for over 9 years and still going to 16 years, which PDP ruled. But it must watch the PDP hubris. APC must watch the PDP disease. It must watch the PDP pride and taking Nigerians, the voters for granted. I doubt if the PDP will regain its lost glory. The party has offended Nigerians hence it was rejected in 2015. All efforts to resurrect the PDP and restore it to the power at the centre have failed. It failed in 2019 and 2023 because of self-pride and self-inflicted wounds. PDP failed in 2023 because it went into the poll a highly divided house, which was bound to fall. It failed because it jettisoned the power sharing principle between the North and the South. It will fail again if it still disregards that zoning formula in 2027.
Rather than gallivanting all over the country in the name of visits, the leaders of the opposition should sit together and think of building people and institutions. They should groom their followers and supporters and make them believe in them, their ideology, party and programmes. They should start mentoring some followers. They should start building a strong party which they will use to contest election in 2027. Moving from one party to another or seeing the political party as just a multi-purpose vehicle to contest election and grab power. No, a political party is more than that. The PDP and the LP need urgent restructuring and rebuilding before they can be deployed for elections in 2027. The wrangling in these parties will not help them in 2027. What are these parties doing to win off-season polls in Edo and Ondo? Since the end of the 2023 election cycle, what are these major parties doing to be in the hearts of Nigerians, especially the young voters. These issues should engage the urgent attention of the opposition and not 2027. Clearly, the 2027 election is for the South, it is not for Atiku.