EVENTS have raced so fast in the past few weeks on Nigeria’s political landscape -notably the bid by at least 110 associations to be registered as political parties, the resignation of All Progressives Congress (APC) national chairman, Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje, the unveiling of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as the coalition platform for certain opposition politicians ahead of 2027, among others – and the fate of the ‘light’ of the Labour Party (LP), Mr Peter Obi, its 2023 presidential candidate.
Some happenings require a revisit here. Recall that on the night of June 29, Obi was on X space, where he engaged his supporters. He minced no words when he assured them that he would be on the ballot to contest the 2027 presidential election. He equally spoke of the possibility of serving just one term of four years. The former governor of Anambra State also clarified what was then speculated about his being part of a coalition where he would be the running mate to some politicians, denying that he entered into any such agreement. He said: “I have not joined in any form of discussion on joint tickets including with (former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar). If there is any form of agreement that will restrict me to four years in office, I will comply with the agreement and be ready to leave office by 28th May, 2031.”
Answering questions on the same x space, Obi acknowledged “being involved in coalition talks because of his desire to rescue Nigeria from the drift by aligning with all patriotic Nigerians.” He said of the coalition: “If the coalition is not about stopping the killings in Benue, Zamfara, how to revive our economy, how to make our industries productive, how to put food on the tables of Nigerians…. Count me out. Nigeria is currently at war. We need to do something about it.” He urged Nigerians to see the need to rescue the country with him, stating, “I will bring stability to Nigeria within two years in office. Leaders of Nigeria should sit down in Nigeria and fix Nigeria.”
Speaking on the crisis rocking the LP, Obi said steps were being taken to get the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to endorse the Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee (NCC) of the LP, based on the April 4 Supreme Court judgment. The X Space interaction would suggest that Obi still has in mind to run the 2027 polls on the ticket of the LP, especially by disclosing the fact that his faction of the party led by a former Minister, Senator Nenadi Usman, was approaching INEC to sort out any lingering issues.
Obidient Movement
Yet, earlier on June 25, the chairman of the Independent National electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, had informed the nation that 110 associations filed applications seeking registration as new parties to participate in the next general election. Yakubu released the information during the second regular consultative meeting of INEC with media executives in Abuja. On the list were two names linked with the Obidients Movements, a vibrant youth group fiercely loyal to Peter Obi. On number 25 was listed Obidient Peoples Party (OPP), while number 55 had Obidients Peoples Party.
Fast forward to July 2 when top opposition politicians like Atiku, former president of the Senate, David Mark; former Transport Minister, Rotimi Amaechi; former governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai; former APC national chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun; former deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Honourable Emeka Ihedioha, among others, gathered at the Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja to adopt the ADC as the coalition platform for the 2027 election, with the sole aim of ending President Tinubu’s ambition to win a second term. Obi, who was a key figure there, delivered a speech and joined the coalition with his full chest. But 24 hours later, the former governor again took to his X handle to write about the event of July 2. He wrote: “Yesterday, the coalition members formally adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 Nigeria General Elections with Distinguished Senator David Mark serving as the National Chairman and H.E. Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola serving as the National Secretary. Our commitment is to sacrifice and work together towards the 2027 General Elections, ensuring that Nigeria gets a competent, capable, and compassionate leadership that will prioritise the nation’s future by putting the welfare of Nigerians first.
“This decision was not made lightly. It comes from deep reflection on where we are as a country and what must be done to move forward. No one group can change Nigeria alone. To dismantle the structures that keep our people in poverty and insecurity, we must build bridges, not walls even when those bridges are uneasy. A New Nigeria is Possible.”
Posers
Clearly, this declaration and endorsement of the ADC confirms Obi has left the LP, technically speaking. But the development has also left political watchers asking more questions they say remain unanswered. One is the fact that there is no where Obi has indicated that he has resigned from the LP; though many of the other coalition members have also not given any indications yet of resigning from their political parties formally.
Does this raise doubts over Obi’s commitment to the ADC coalition? Is this more a case of holding the card in hand and watching and seeing how things pan out in the days and weeks ahead?
A political analyst, Dr James Garkowa, argues this “raises issues of conflict of interest or even double-speak” that deserve close monitoring. “Nigerian politicians are not to be trusted. It is likely this coalition is dead on arrival, it may not survive. The interests there are varied and conflicting. It is not about Obi alone. Good thing, he has given his conditions for being part of the coalition. It means there is a high chance he will pull out if things turn against expectations. “So, would you blame Obi if he appears to be standing astride ADC and LP for now,” he queried.
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The deputy national chairman of one of the factions of the Labour Party, Dr Ayo Olorunfemi, insists Obi must resign from the LP, having chosen to join the ADC. He holds the view that it’s either Obi leaves honourably “or we will show him how to leave.” He added: “The Labour Party of today is different from the LP of 2023. We are reforming; we are talking about quality now.
“Take the case of the Obidients Movement. We have rebranded Obidients to the Directorate of Youths and Mobilisation as part of the new reforms. We realised our mistakes and the mistakes of the past won’t be repeated. We are going to be appealing to the conscience of Nigerians so that we can run this country like an organised place.”
Another case to look at is the push by the Obidients to register a political party. Is Obi working on establishing his own independent political platform, different from the LP and the ADC? Or, are the Obidients trying to chart a separate course for themselves should their principal ignore their warning never to play second fiddle by accepting to be the running mate to candidate in the name of merger or coalition? On what platform truly is Obi running in 2027?
The answers dim further when placed side-by-side with the fact that the rival factions in the LP are divided on the issue of coalition and the place Obi in all of it. Barely 24 hours after Obi joined the coalition, the factional war of words resumed again on July 3.
While the National Caretaker Committee (NCC) of the party led by former Minister of Finance, Senator Nenadi Usman, wholly backed Obi’s decision to join the ADC, the National Working Committee (NWC) under the leadership of the National Chairman, Mr Julius Abure, gave Obi a 48-hour ultimatum to resign from the LP. As usual, each of the camps, keeping with their recent trends, insisted they remained the authentic leadership of the party.
The Abure group, which was the first to react to Obi’s decision, said by joining the coalition, Obi had lost his membership of the LP and must resign within 48 hours. The camp described the coalition as a conglomeration of “power mongers whose only interest was self and not the people.” It warned Nigerians that the “often mouthed ‘new Nigeria is Possible’ is a ruse and cannot be achieved with the assemblage of old, recycled, desperate and frustrated politicians in the coalition.”
The national publicity secretary, Mr Obiora Ifoh, in a statement, alleged that “all those who mismanaged Nigeria over the years are the ones that gathered themselves in the coalition while noting that desperate politicians can’t birth new Nigeria.” The faction had more to say to buttress its stance, “We are aware of several nocturnal meetings between Peter Obi and some of our members, lobbying them to join him in his new party. We’re also aware that a number of them have refused to defect with him.
“Labour Party has consistently said it is not part of the coalition and therefore, any of our members who is part of the coalition is given within 48 hours to formally resign his membership of the party. Labour Party is not available for people with dual agenda, people with deceptive persona. The party will not avail itself to individuals who have one leg in one party and another leg elsewhere.
“Nearly 70 percent of the Nigerian population are the youth, who are tired of the old order, tired of gerontocrats deciding their fate. The new Nigeria that the youths are dreaming of, is not what can be realized from what we are seeing in the coalition. These people are opportunistic politicians who are only interested in relaunching themselves into a circle of power, people who are desperate to continue holding on to power.”
Party discipline
On the other side, the Usman-led NCC swiftly dismissed the Abure group, saying that following the April 4 Supreme Court judgment, which ended his tenure, Abure no longer controlled any authority in the LP to decide the fate of Obi. It said Obi remained part of the LP while also participating in the ADC’s coalition. The Senior Special Adviser (Media) to the NCC’s Chairman, Ken Eluma Asogwa, while giving the position of the camp, urged Nigerians and party supporters to ignore the Abure camp.
Disputing the 48-hour ultimatum issued by the Abure group, the NCC leader’s aide wrote, “The attention of the Labour Party has been drawn to misleading reports and commentaries suggesting that His Excellency, Mr. Peter Obi, has been issued a 48-hour ultimatum to resign from the party following his participation in the recent coalition talks and the unveiling of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Abuja. For the avoidance of doubt, the leadership of the Labour Party, on May 26, 2025, publicly declared its full support for Mr. Obi’s involvement in the coalition efforts aimed at creating a robust political alternative to rescue Nigeria from the disastrous misrule of the APC. That position has not changed. We wish to reaffirm that Mr. Peter Obi’s participation in the coalition activities, including the ADC unveiling, was done with the full knowledge, approval, and support of the Labour Party leadership.”
Like the Abure camp did, the Usman-led NCC also went further to say, “The individuals claiming to have issued an ultimatum to Mr. Obi are political jesters with no legitimate standing in the Labour Party. They are neither recognised by the party nor by the law, having long been sacked by the Supreme Court of Nigeria – the highest court in the land – and suspended from the party for their serial acts of indiscipline and anti-party activities. “It is the remnants of the disorder and mess left behind by these impostors that the current leadership under Senator Nenadi Usman continues to clean. Therefore, members of the public, and especially the media, are urged to disregard the distractions and mischief from these discredited elements. For clarity, the only legitimate and authoritative source of information regarding the official position of the Labour Party on any matter remains the office of Senator Nenadi Usman, Acting National Chairman of the Labour Party.”
While the two camps engaged each other, Obi himself took to his X handle again to explain the circumstances under which he participated in the unveiling of the ADC, but maintaining sealed lips on his future with the LP or even the Obidients! He tweeted: “Yesterday, the coalition members formally adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 Nigeria General Elections with Distinguished Senator David Mark serving as the National Chairman and H.E. Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola serving as the National Secretary. Our commitment is to sacrifice and work together towards the 2027 general election, ensuring that Nigeria gets a competent, capable, and compassionate leadership that will prioritise the nation’s future by putting the welfare of Nigerians first.
“This decision was not made lightly. It comes from deep reflection on where we are as a country and what must be done to move forward. No one group can change Nigeria alone. To dismantle the structures that keep our people in poverty and insecurity, we must build bridges, not walls even when those bridges are uneasy,” he said.
The way things stand, Obi, and Obidients have other gladiators to contend with in the latest realignment of forces, perhaps hungrier for control of the reins of the Aso Rock State House than him. Atiku’s biggest life ambition has been to be Nigeria’s President, the reason the former Vice-President keeps reappearing on the scenes every election cycle since the return to full democratic governance in 1999. Will he fortify the ADC, then retire from contesting? It’s uncertain; nobody can swear the Turaki Adamawa will, amid the rumours of a possible Atiku-Amaechi ticket.
Talk about Amaechi directly, el-Rufai and a host of others in that ADC community; everyone is scheming for the same crown, leaving observers to conclude that, for now, the coalition doesn’t offer anyone any guarantees yet, and there may be wisdom in keeping the doors of the LP, the Obidients’ registration push, ajar.
and then