Labour Party’s former presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, has called for clearly defined terms and shared commitments among opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Obi maintained that issues such as the rotation of political offices and the informal agreements guiding them must be properly articulated to avoid future crises.
Speaking in a recent video interview sighted by DAILY POST on Thursday, Obi said he supports the ADC-led coalition but insists that fundamental principles must be agreed upon to earn Nigerians’ trust.
The former Anambra State Governor stressed that members of the coalition are not newcomers to politics, adding that the political class must present fresh ideas capable of restoring public confidence.
He said leaders such as former Senate President David Mark and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar possess the experience to guide the coalition but emphasised the need for internal clarity and proper organisation.
According to him, opposition parties must define what they intend to offer Nigerians beyond merely seeking to replace the current administration.
Obi said: “Today, I’m a member of the Labour Party, and I subscribe to the coalition, ADC Coalition for the 2027 election. I believe in it. But as much as I believe in it, I need to know the fundamentals that we all agree to respect. What are we going to do for the average Nigerian person? Because we are not different people. We are still part of the political class. So it’s not as if they were a bunch of new people.
“Yes, I respect all those who are leaders there. Of course, our Chairman, David Mark, is one of those people I respect, and I believe he has the political sagacity to lead the party. And so are so many others we have there, people like my own leader, Atiku, somebody for whom I have all my respect and believe in the good of Nigeria. But in all this, there are still some fine lines that we need to respect, where things must be done properly, where we must sit down and talk about where we’re driving the country to. Because, like I said, we are not new people; we’re the same political class. So we must come with new ideas that Nigerians will trust.
“We must come with new things, new perspectives, and we must try to see how we can give Nigeria the alternative that will come with competence, character, capacity, commitment, and compassion to drive this new vehicle, because it’s important.
“We can’t just say, ‘Oh, we don’t like what these people are doing. Let them go.’ If they go, what is the alternative? We’ve done that in 2015: ‘Let this man just go,’ and he went.
“So we now have to be clear. What are we getting? Can we trust those who are going to drive this vehicle and do what they’re saying? Where have they said it before?
“It all depends. I am not desperate to become the president of Nigeria. I’m desperate to see Nigeria work. I want to see what it is that they are offering. Today, we have what we can call unsigned agreements about the presidency, about rotation of offices. This is why this person will come from here, this person will come from there. All these things need to be organised. The reason why it needs to be organised is that you don’t need to create confusion for the future.
“Today, it’s about the future. So if we’re going to do anything, let’s look at the future. Let’s not look at what is going to benefit us.
“Even if it takes us one week to agree, we do. If Nigerians want this country to change, we can make a change. It doesn’t matter how. Even if we start three months, six months, eight months, or one year before the election, we can still prepare.”