As the coalition meant to oust President Bola Tinubu from power gains momentum, the All Progressives Congress has asserted that the President will emerge victorious in the 2027 election.
APC spokesman, Bala Ibrahim, described the coalition, whose leaders met in Abuja on Tuesday, as “dead on arrival.”
Multiple sources within the coalition movement revealed their plans to adopt the African Democratic Congress as their political platform, confirming DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS earlier exclusive reports.
This is as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, ex-Senate President David Mark, former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido, and other figures within the People’s Democratic Party, labelled the ruling APC, a disaster to the nation.
“The APC government, which came into being on the false and evil propaganda to save Nigeria from PDP is now a disaster to our nation and therefore must be voted out of power,’’ the coalition members attacked the Tinubu administration in a communiqué issued after their meeting held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.
The statement, signed by David Mark, called on party members and Nigerians at large to support the emerging coalition aimed at defeating the APC in the 2027 presidential election.
In addition to Atiku and Lamido, other PDP stalwarts present at the meeting include former PDP National Chairman, Uche Secondus; former Governors Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), Liyel Imoke (Cross River), Babangida Aliyu (Niger), and Dr Sam Egwu (Ebonyi).
Others in attendance are Senator Ben Obi, former PDP National Women Leader, Josephine Anenih; former National Organising Secretary Senator Austin Akobundu, ex-National Publicity Secretary Kola Ologbondiyan, and former National Youth Leader Abdullahi Maibasira, among others.
The Tinubu administration has come under severe censure over the economic and security challenges facing the country.
Ironically, the main opposition parties, including the PDP, Labour Party, New Nigeria Peoples Party, and Social Democratic Party, have been battling internal divisions of their own.
In a move to mount a serious challenge ahead of the 2027 elections, former Vice President Atiku, LP’s Peter Obi, ex-Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai, and others unveiled a new political coalition in Abuja on March 20.
The development sparked widespread national discourse on the prospects of a unified opposition, drawing varied reactions from analysts and citizens alike.
For months, speculations surrounded the choice of a political platform for the coalition. But on May 19, DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS exclusively reported that the coalition had officially adopted the African Democratic Congress, (ADC), as its political base.
Earlier, reports by DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS affirmed that the coalition has chosen the African Democratic Congress as its political platform and has selected Senator Mark to serve as interim chairman, with an official unveiling scheduled for Wednesday.
Rising from their meeting, the coalition issued a communique, which read,” The meeting encourages all well-meaning PDP members and other patriotic Nigerians to join the coalition.
“All coalition partners must be united on the issues of national unity, democracy, national security and national economy and the political will to stamp out corruption embedded in our institutions.
“The coalition partners to work out the modalities of winning all elections, taking into consideration local and national peculiarities.”
The communiqué stated that the gathering of Concerned PDP Leaders was convened to address the troubling state of the party.
The group expressed concern that since the party’s defeat in the last presidential election and the departure of Dr Iyorchia Ayu as the national chairman, the PDP has struggled to regain its footing.
It added, “Vested interests from within and the irresponsible actions of the APC-led Federal Government, which has been using state institutions to stifle and destroy Democracy, know no bounds!
“The inability of PDP leadership to lead the party by its Constitution, rules and regulations led it into a chaotic and undisciplined Party!
“The vision of the founding fathers for which the party was established and the role it played in restoring Nigeria as stable and united country and key player on the regional, continental, and global stage has been washed away just as our roles as the leader of the black race is now overtaken by smaller and less endowed countries.”
Mark, Atiku, and other PDP leaders decried the current state of Nigeria, describing the nation as weakened and a source of embarrassment in the international community.
The coalition members added in the communique, “All indices of development that support the comfort and quality of life of the citizens have collapsed, and life is now hell in Nigeria.
“The PDP, which is organic with the discipline, capacity, and history to lead and save Nigeria, is now a shadow of its old self. The heat wave unleashed by the APC Federal government through threats, blackmail and patronage has forced elected officers in government to abandon the PDP.”
An insider privy to the decisions at the meeting informed DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS that the majority of PDP leaders had decided to support the ADC candidate while retaining their PDP membership.
He stated, “You see, in the meeting, we discussed the state of the PDP and how the party can no longer effectively lead the opposition.
“So, we resolved to form a personal alliance with the ADC. What this means is that some of us will remain in the PDP while working for the victory of the ADC presidential candidate.
“I can confirm to you that the ADC will be unveiled as the coalition’s political party platform tomorrow (today) here in Abuja. Some PDP leaders will defect, while others will remain in the party.”
Attempts to reach the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, and the National Chairman, Umar Damagum, for responses were unsuccessful as they did not answer their calls as of the time of filing this report.
In response, APC Director of Publicity, Bala Ibrahim, stated that the coalition members had been defeated in the past and expressed confidence that President Tinubu would defeat them collectively again in 2027.
He stated, “The fact that they are meeting in hotels or places at night without any fear means the APC government has improved the security situation of the country. It means the power system of the country has improved. It has improved so well that they don’t have any fear of insecurity, nor do they have any fear of power failure.
“The atmosphere provided by the APC administration for the freedom of association peacefully in itself is a pointer to the improvement.
“The government will continue to provide a favourable atmosphere for them to meet and discuss freely without any harassment, but they are not likely to give any fear or scare to the APC because they are dead on arrival.
“But the coalition is a waste of time. Is it dead on arrival? Yes. It’s dead on arrival. All of them are doing it for selfish reasons and not in the interest of Nigerians.
“I said the coalition is dead on arrival because it’s composed of people who were defeated politically, defeated ideologically, and they will be defeated again collectively in 2027 by our party’s candidate.”
Meanwhile, the senator representing Benue South, Abba Moro, described Tuesday’s meeting of leading opposition figures in Abuja as a gathering aimed at achieving a national purpose.
In an interview with DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS, Moro, a member of the PDP, described the conveners of the meeting as elder statesmen.
He said, “These are senior and elder statesmen and political leaders in the country. I want to believe that they know what they are doing. I think this is part of the general trend in the country now, a season of alignment and realignment to achieve a political purpose.”
In a separate interview with our correspondent, PDP chieftain, Segun Sowunmi, stated that with the recent resolution of the crisis surrounding the position of the party’s National Secretary office, the road was clear for it to plan for the battle ahead.
Speaking on the meeting between Atiku and his associates, Sowunmi said, “It is their right to meet as many times as they like. The PDP is a party grounded on rules, procedures and history. Now that the PDP has resolved the issues of secretaryship, the party is now able to concentrate and let those who love to meander about keep doing their thing while the party plans.”
In a related development, the media aide to former Interior Minister Rauf Aregbesola, Sola Fasure, backed Tuesday’s closed-door meeting between the ex-Vice President and prominent leaders of the PDP.
Reacting to the development, Fasure described the meeting as “a good indication of progress,” noting that it aligns with ongoing coalition efforts aimed at uniting opposition forces ahead of the 2027 general election.
“The information from the coalition is that Aregbesola is the coordinator for the South West. So, nothing has changed. You can see that the coalition is coalescing. They are still coming together,” he said.
Fasure also addressed the growing interest in Labour Party’s Peter Obi’s proposal for a single-term presidency, saying the idea resonates with many leaders in the emerging coalition.
“Every individual have their own dream and aspiration. I think I heard Obi saying something about tackling the security crisis and strengthening the Nigerian economy and all that. There is no one in the coalition who doesn’t share that vision,” he stated.
He dismissed any notion of internal competition, emphasising that the coalition’s unity was rooted in shared values and common goals rather than personal ambition.
“It is not a competition. What Obi said is what all of them equally subscribed to. So, none will disagree with the vision. Individual interest is also part of politics — you can’t take it out. Politics is actually an interaction of collective and individual interests,” he explained.
“What we are witnessing is a realignment of forces to form a formidable opposition. You must have noticed that Tinubu has virtually destroyed the political party system in the country. Now, you really cannot tell which one is the ruling party or opposition.”
According to him, the current flux in the political space is part of a broader effort to establish a clear and functional opposition.
“Everything going on now is about fashioning out a clear-cut opposition. It’s a fundamental rule of power. Let us see how it goes,” he added.
A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, was optimistic about the coalition’s strength and direction.
“The coalition is still ongoing. We will tell Nigerians our position,” Lawal stated.
On Atiku’s meeting with PDP stakeholders, the ex-SGF declined to offer detailed comments, saying, “I don’t want to get involved in PDP affairs. I am not their party member and can’t speak for them. I am in Adamawa at the moment.”
He also reacted to Obi’s single tenure proposal, noting that it remains a political strategy that should ultimately be judged by the electorate.
“Politicians have their strategies and plans. It’s not an issue. Even Buhari, whom some expected to do just four years, ended up completing eight,” he remarked.