Reportedly, in preparation for the 2027 general election, Atiku Abubakar, who was the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, is said to be considering the formation of a new political party to contest against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
According to The Nation, Atiku’s camp expresses concern about the ongoing disunity within the leading opposition party. They fear that if this disunity persists until 2027, the party may struggle to unseat the ruling party from power.
A southern senator who spoke with the publication above said the former Vice President has been liaising with ex-Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari, who contested the Senate Presidency and lost to Senator Godswill Akpabio.
The source said Atiku and his allies are mulling a repeat of the 2013 scenario, where some governors and federal legislators rebelled against the PDP and teamed up with other parties to form the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Recall the ruling APC was formed in February 2013, following the merger of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and what was called the new-PDP.
The source said: “They have gone far in the arrangement. They believe that the country is in the same situation as it was in 2014 during the Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s era, hence, their decision to form a mega party to wrest power from Tinubu.
“Ningi’s statement on the BBC Hausa Service was one of the moves of the promoters of the mega party. They want to create problems in the National Assembly and set the lawmakers against each other and the Presidency.”
The southern senator said the majority of his colleagues were aware of the plot to return power to the North and destabilise Tinubu’s government.
He added: “We know their game plan. We are watching them. We have since returned to our political arsenal to thwart any move to create enmity between us and the Executive and destabilise the government.”
