NIGERIA: Professor of Political Economy, Pat Utomi, is set to lead a fresh round of consultations with major opposition presidential candidates and their party leaders as part of efforts to produce a single candidate to challenge President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress in the 2027 presidential election.
The Movement for Credible Elections (MCE), which initiated the process, said the engagements would be held behind closed doors and concluded within two weeks, The PUNCH reports.
Candidates expected to be consulted include former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress; Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress; Adewole Adebayo of the Social Democratic Party; Seyi Makinde of the Allied Peoples Movement; Donald Duke of the Peoples Redemption Party; Sandy Onor of the Peoples Democratic Party; Peter Agada of the Young Progressives Party; and Omoyele Sowore of the African Action Congress.
The development was disclosed in a statement on Monday by MCE Media Coordinator, James Ezema.
According to the statement, the Utomi-led Political Commission will engage the shortlisted candidates and their party leaders ahead of a tactical session scheduled to hold in Ibadan in a fortnight.
MCE said the decision to hold the meetings behind closed doors was aimed at shielding the negotiations from what it described as “political mercenaries and jobbers” allegedly opposed to the initiative.
The movement said the consultations were also intended to avoid the difficulties that characterised previous attempts at opposition unity, where political actors agreed on the need for a common front but became divided when the issue of selecting a presidential candidate arose.
It said the process would be guided by credibility, transparency, fairness, due process and a level playing field, with the modalities and terms of endorsement to be agreed upon by the participating candidates and parties.
MCE said candidates would be assessed against criteria including national acceptability, competence, integrity, leadership profile, political electability, policy orientation, commitment to democratic institutions, capacity to unite the country and ability to work with diverse social interests.
The process, it added, would also consider the aspirants’ understanding of Nigeria’s political and democratic challenges, including what it described as the country’s “national constitutional question.”
Beyond selecting a presidential candidate, MCE said the proposed coalition would be built around a clearly articulated national programme that would be made available for public scrutiny.
“The Nigerian people deserve more than a coalition of political personalities. They deserve a coalition of ideas, competence, values and a coherent ideological programme for national salvation,” the movement stated.
It said the proposed common agenda would address insecurity, economic hardship, unemployment, poverty, institutional decay, electoral integrity, constitutional reform, education, healthcare, energy and the high cost of governance.
MCE stressed that it was not seeking to impose a candidate on any party or aspirant but to facilitate a process through which the opposition could arrive at a broadly acceptable arrangement.
The movement said participating candidates and parties would, however, be expected to commit beforehand to respecting the outcome of the process and supporting whoever emerges as the coalition’s adopted presidential candidate.
The latest initiative comes amid several efforts to forge cooperation among opposition parties ahead of the 2027 elections.
In August, the G100, a coalition of 100 concerned Nigerians, called on opposition leaders to set aside personal ambitions and negotiate an electoral arrangement based on a single presidential candidate, a common programme and a coordinated strategy.
The group, in its “Doctrine of a Necessary Democratic Opposition,” appealed to opposition figures including Atiku, Obi, Makinde, Bala Mohammed, Seriake Dickson, Rotimi Amaechi, Rabiu Kwankwaso and Rauf Aregbesola to place what it described as national interest above personal ambition.
G100 subsequently consulted opposition parties including the ADC, APM, NDC, PDP, PRP and SDP on a possible framework for cooperation ahead of the election.
Utomi is expected to be joined in the MCE consultations by Maryam Ciroma, Modupe Adelaja, Solomon Dalung, Uche Onyeagocha, Olusegun Mayegun, Sam Amadi, Mike Iginni, Obongawan Barbara Etim James, Olawale Okunniyi and Dr Adum Ter Alex, among others.
MCE urged the stakeholders to approach the negotiations with an open mind and place the country’s democratic future ahead of personal interests.
It said the ultimate objective was to present Nigerians with what it described as a “credible people-oriented governance” alternative rather than simply another political arrangement.
The movement also acknowledged that political negotiation would be necessary, saying those seeking to present a democratic alternative must be prepared to make personal sacrifices, accommodate competing interests and recognise that no individual or political party could independently compete against the governing party with a unified opposition front.
