By our reporter
There are indications that a rocky terrain awaits promoters of a proposed mega coalition to oust President Bola Tinubu from power in 2027.
Even some of the brains behind the project now acknowledge that pushing the President out of office will not be a stroll in the park as, right from the early stage of formation of the coalition, institutional hurdles have reportedly been placed on their path.
Background To Coalition
Recall that immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, had on March 10,2025 quit the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and anchored his political ship in the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
He then rallied other politicians such as the presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 elections, Atiku Abubakar; the latter’s colleague in the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi; that of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Kwankwaso, and others to join him in an omnibus coalition to remove both Tinubu and APC from power, for allegedly not moving the country in the right direction.
Since then, there have been defections from APC and others to SDP with personalities like Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, former Chief Security Officer to ex-Head of State, the now-late Gen. Sani Abacha, shifting camp to SDP even as a flurry of talks on political alignment and realignments continue to hold.
Despite Obstacles, Coalition Partners Soldier On
However, apparently under no illusion that what awaits the emerging coalition will be easy, former APC Vice Chairman (North-West), Salihu Lukman, today, Monday, March 24, disclosed that discussions on forming a unified opposition party to challenge APC in 2027 were in the concluding stages.
In a statement while reacting to Atiku’s recent disclosure that the opposition was in the process of forging a coalition to butt heads with APC in 2027, Lukman noted that Atiku’s announcement had ignited massive nationwide debate, pointing out that while no final decisions have been taken, discussions were at an advanced stage.
Nonetheless, he said the system is not making life easy for them as exemplified by when some coalition members attempted to register new political parties, but their efforts were thwarted by electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He said a couple of smaller registered parties without any seats in the 2023 elections may be de-registered, further slashing platform options for the coalition.
Coalition’s Current Areas Of Focus
Irrespective of these, Lukman stated that the main focus of the coalition discussions was on extracting a commitment from leaders to jettison their personal ambitions and work together.
Giving another indication that SDP may not be the final choice for the coalition, the former APC stalwart said the coalition partners were in the process of deciding which political party will serve as the coalition’s platform, amid emergence of zoning concerns.
According to him, once a party platform is picked by the coalition, then a decision will be made on the issue of candidate selection.
Lukman warned that time was running out to get things done, insisting that failure to get the coalition up and running on time will leave the country staring bleakly at a one-party option.
Kwankwaso Receives Warning Against Joining Coalition
Obviously pondering the invitation to join the emerging coalition, presidential candidate of NNPP in the 2023 general elections, Kwankwaso received a nudge from a party stalwart,warning him to steer clear of potential booby traps on the way.
The stalwart, Asiwaju Moshood Shittu, cautioned Kwankwaso against hastily signing off on any political alliance or merger.
Shittu, a former Director-General (North) of the Kwankwaso Presidential Campaign Council, told newsmen in Abuja that any hurried alliance bereft of a lucid agenda or acceptable presidential candidate, may end up as a “marriage of inconvenience.”
Going down memory lane, Asiwaju Shittu referenced the 2014 merger that birthed APC and defeated then-President Goodluck Jonathan, pointing out that the contraption instead brought in a worse leadership in the country.
Counseling Kwankwaso to meticulously assess potential alliances, he urged him to interrogate the credibility of the coalition’s planned candidate, their agenda, and how to actualize same.
Shittu implored Kwankwaso, whose party controls Kano State, one of Nigeria’s vote-rich states, to only take a position that favours the generality of Nigerians, asserting that the country “cannot afford another gamble in leadership.”
Cleric Speaks On Whether Or Not Tinubu’ll Go
As politicians strategized, the spiritual dimension to the preparations has been proffered by a cleric.
Leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, prophesied that the SDP will soon be stronger than the PDP, LP and others touted to be in the process of coalescing.
However, Primate Ayodele revealed that, despite this, it cannot remove Tinubu in 2027, except the partners get things right ab initio .
Explaining this, he said SDP will hit the rocks because decampees to the party will be more interested in feathering their personal nests than ousting APC.
Primate Ayodele took the position in a statement by his Media Aide, Oluwatosin Osho, on Monday.
The cleric urged SDP to ensure only a presidential aspirant with huge success potentials gets its ticket, warning it to be cautious of the massive inflow of new party members.
The statement read in part: “SDP will be stronger than PDP and Labour. It will be the party to watch, but greed will make the party fail in 2027. Those who will be decamping there will not be focused on winning power but on enriching themselves.
“The party must be careful because of the large number of people joining, and they must be watchful not to give tickets to failures. They must ensure that sentiment and emotions do not influence their selection process.”
To him, only a powerful, altruistic alliance can uproot the Tinubu administration.
His words: “The issue of the 2027 presidency cannot be addressed through a mere coalition; it won’t be about just one party but rather a strong alliance. Coalitions can break, but alliances cannot. A coalition may not last or deliver the desired outcome, but a solid alliance can.
“Defeating Tinubu is not a joke; he is very strong, and it will not be easy. Following the usual political party approach will not achieve anything.
“A new alliance must be formed under a new name, and if this is successfully done, victory will be possible.”
On the possible role of State governors in the suggested alliance, Ayodele cautioned against depending on them, saying they will torpedo the arrangement.
The cleric said: “I also want to warn them not to depend on governors, as they will betray any coalition they try to form. They should build this alliance around the people because some governors are already out of it.
“Some governors, like Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom, Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa, and others that I will mention later, will not be part of the alliance.”
