Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi are weighing their options as pressure mounts on opposition leaders to agree on a single presidential candidate ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general election.
The development comes ahead of an opposition summit scheduled for 18 August in Abuja, convened by the G-100, a coalition of political stakeholders seeking to unite opposition parties and movements against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The group has urged major opposition figures, including Atiku, Obi, Rabiu Kwankwaso and other political leaders, to put aside individual ambitions and work towards a common candidate capable of mounting a strong challenge to President Bola Tinubu in 2027.
The G-100 argues that a divided opposition could split the anti-government vote and weaken its chances of defeating the APC.
However, the proposal has exposed differences among opposition parties over how such an alliance should be structured and, crucially, who should lead it.
Atiku’s camp has welcomed the broader idea of opposition cooperation, but stopped short of confirming whether the former vice-president would attend the 18 August summit.
His Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, said Atiku supported genuine efforts to strengthen the opposition but that his attendance would be communicated after his schedule and participation had been finalised.
“Atiku welcomes every genuine initiative aimed at strengthening democratic opposition and providing Nigerians with a credible alternative,” Mr Shaibu said.
He added that Atiku was consulting political leaders and stakeholders across the opposition, stressing that any eventual arrangement should be transparent, inclusive and democratic.
Obi, meanwhile, has also been invited to the summit, according to the National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, Tanko Yunusa.
Mr Yunusa said the decision on whether Obi would attend rested with the former governor, while acknowledging the need for opposition forces to work together.
“We agree that it is very good for everyone in the opposition to come together under one umbrella,” he said.
But while the prospect of an opposition alliance appears to have gained momentum, disagreements over the political platform and leadership of such a coalition remain.
The Labour Party, for instance, has backed opposition cooperation but argued that any alliance should be built around its existing structure rather than create a new platform.
Its National Publicity Secretary, Ken Asogwa, said the party’s links with the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress gave it a nationwide organisational advantage.
Other opposition groups have been more cautious, insisting that discussions about a common candidate should not precede agreement on the principles, structure and policy direction of any proposed coalition.
The G-100 says its consultations with several opposition parties have so far been constructive, with leaders recognising the need for greater cooperation ahead of the 2027 polls.
The group has said the August 18 summit is intended to provide a platform for parties to discuss the difficult issues of cooperation, compromise and political accommodation rather than impose a predetermined outcome.
With Atiku, Obi, Kwankwaso and other prominent opposition figures commanding separate political constituencies, the question of who would emerge as a consensus presidential candidate is expected to be one of the most contentious issues.
The summit could therefore mark a significant test of whether Nigeria’s fragmented opposition can translate calls for unity into a workable political alliance.
For now, while there appears to be growing agreement on the need for cooperation, the bigger battle may be deciding who gets to lead it.
