Former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, has faulted the failure of opposition leaders Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi to agree on a common presidential candidate for the 2027 election, arguing that Atiku should have been allowed to lead the opposition’s presidential ticket, with Obi taking over after four years.
Lamido, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said an arrangement that would have seen Atiku emerge as the presidential candidate and Obi as his running mate, with an understanding that the latter would succeed him after one term, could have prevented the division currently confronting the opposition.
He made the remarks on Friday while appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he discussed the political implications of the failure by the two opposition leaders to unite ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
According to the former governor, the inability of Atiku and Obi to harmonise their political ambitions has weakened the opposition’s chances of mounting a united challenge against President Bola Tinubu.
“I think the way things are, the propaganda and support warfare is too much. It’s too intense for even Nigeria to be able to really understand what’s happening,” he said.
Lamido attributed the opposition’s predicament partly to the political strength of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), particularly the number of serving and former governors in its fold, as well as the disagreement between Atiku and Obi.
“Because of the number of governors, both serving and former governors of the APC, and because Atiku and Obi divided their own force, it gives Tinubu the advantage,” he said.
He maintained that the opposition leaders were making it easier for Tinubu to pursue a second term by failing to reach an agreement on a common political platform and presidential arrangement.
“So both Peter Obi and Atiku are simply handing Tinubu, very easily. But if they come together, it would have been a high-level canvas, you know, Atiku for president and Obi running mate, and then after four years, one takes over,” he said.
Atiku and Obi, who contested against Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election on the platforms of the PDP and Labour Party respectively, later left their parties to pursue a common opposition platform ahead of the 2027 elections.
In July 2025, opposition leaders adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as a coalition platform to challenge the ruling APC.
However, disagreements over party leadership, structure and presidential ambitions reportedly weakened the alliance.
The crisis eventually led Obi and former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, to leave the ADC for the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in May 2026. Obi was subsequently adopted as the NDC’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election.
Atiku, meanwhile, remained in the ADC and emerged as the party’s presidential candidate after its primary.
Obi has maintained that any political arrangement with Atiku must be based on a formal agreement between their respective parties rather than a personal understanding.
Speaking further, Lamido expressed concern that the personal ambitions of political leaders had overshadowed the broader national interest, warning that Nigerians would bear the consequences irrespective of who eventually wins the presidential election.
“I’ve been saying, look, whoever wins, Nigeria will lose. That’s my problem.
“Whoever, whether Peter Obi, Atiku, whoever wins, in terms of our unity, our economy, our love as a country of brothers and sisters, it’s all gone down. It’s more about their personalities. They are abusing each other. Those things become very, very personal,” he said.
The former governor stressed that his concern went beyond the outcome of the election, noting that the growing hostility among political actors could further undermine national unity and cohesion.
He also raised concerns about increasing political tension, particularly in northern Nigeria, citing what he described as propaganda, hate campaigns and incitement.
Lamido lamented that political campaigns had shifted away from substantive discussions about national development, unity, empathy and the programmes candidates intend to implement if elected.
“We’ve abandoned the traditional campaign on issues, about love, about empathy, about unity, about Nigeria, and then what can you offer? What can you offer? So it’s not there anymore,” he said.
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