Most political events and activities across the country in recent time, clearly indicate that the build-up to the 2027 presidential election has commenced more than two years ahead of the poll.

The build-up activities have practically manifested in various ways and dimensions, including the alleged orchestrated leadership crises rocking almost all the political parties. Critical observers also point to the critical comments against the government’s economic and administrative policies by some political leaders, targeted at discrediting or increasing the visibilities of political opponents and stakeholders.

Again, the hype to the 2027 presidential election has equally reflected in the speculated plans by major political actors to align, realign, and reports of plans to form a strong political party through a coalition of merged mega parties.

The sponsored crises rocking virtually all the opposition political parties, the cold war within the camp of the APC, the surprised acceptance by certain leaders to collapse their political structures to support one another and the expression of willingness by some candidates to serve as deputy, are possibilities that the highly-anticipated 2027 competitive poll has entered into speed gears.

One of the conspiracy theories is that the effects of the build-up have made it difficult for the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to conduct its severally postponed elective national convention.

The situation is also the same in the other opposition political parties like the Labour Party (LP), and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), among others, where things have almost completely fallen apart with the centre still struggling to hold.

The crises in the three major opposition political parties, were apparently responsible for the rumoured plan by the coalition of disgruntled political leaders to float a party that will give the ruling APC a run for its money during the 2027 poll.

The heavyweight politicians speculated to be behind the proposed merger, include former vice presidents Atiku Abubakar, and Yemi Osinbajo, former state governors and Ministers like Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, Rauf Aregbesola, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Peter Obi, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, Kayode Fayemi, Ifeanyi Okowa, Rochas Okorocha among many others.

The alignment has evidently manifested in many other ways, including Atiku holding crucial meetings with Peter Obi and more recently, NNPP 2023 presidential candidate, Kwankwaso, also having an important meeting with the governor of Abia State, Alex Otti.

To further rest the curiosity of certain cynics, both Atiku and Kwankwaso recently tactically expressed readiness to sacrifice their ambitions and collaborate to actualise Obi’s determination to wrest power from the clutches of the ruling APC during the 2027 presidential election.

While Atiku predicated his willingness to sacrifice his ambition on the final decision of his party to zone the ticket to the South-East and specifically select Peter Obi as its candidate, Kwankwaso has also confirmed his readiness to deputise the beautiful bride, Obi, as the vice presidential candidate during the poll.

Atiku, in his declaration in a recent interview with BBC Hausa Service, stated; “If the party decides that it is the turn of the South East and Peter Obi is chosen, I won’t hesitate to support him.”

Also responding to the questions concerning his recent meeting with Obi, Atiku said: “It’s just a normal friendly meeting that we often have, particularly among us in the opposition parties. Such meetings are healthy for Nigeria’s democracy and in the country’s interest.”

Atiku didn’t stop there, as he equally confirmed that the networking will bring the merger, admitting: “Yes, it is very much possible. We can merge to achieve a common goal. So, it is possible, and nothing can stop it if we wish to achieve that.”

The former Vice President, who denied that the choice of presidential candidate might frustrate the proposed merger, further noted: “That is not true. That challenge will not arise. I can tell you that the choice of who will fly the flag of the party won’t be an issue.”

On his part, Kwankwaso, who spoke in Hausa language in a trending video on X, equally expressed willingness to concede vice presidential position to Obi if certain conditions are met. He stressed: “I am bigger than Peter Obi politically, I am his elder brother, I am a PhD holder, I performed better than him when I was a governor of my state.

“I have no problem with deputising Peter Obi, but only if certain conditions are met. We are willing to engage in discussions, provided that trust is established.”

In what looked like giving extra breath of life to the proposal, the leadership of both political parties, LP and NNPP, have graciously bought into the arrangement through their unequivocal endorsement of the collaborative plan.

Reacting in an interview, National Secretary of LP, Umar Farouk, described Kwankwaso’s renewed move as a welcome development, appealing to him however, not to frustrate the merger talk with his insinuation of being a better politician and holding a higher education degree.

He said: “As a political party, we stand for good governance and we have equally given all our candidates, both former and serving ones, the opportunity to choose how to associate with people of like-minds who share the same philosophy and ideology of the LP.

“We are happy Kwankwaso has alighted from the high horse he was riding and is willing to offer himself to Obi as deputy, having seen he garnered more than six million votes at the 2023 election. With his so-called popularity in the North, Kwankwaso could only amass less than two million votes.

“Again, he should stop this talk of being a bigger politician and PhD holder. What did he even do as a Minister of Defence? This is why we advise politicians to always consider the dynamics of politics to gauge the temperament of the electorate at a particular time.

“Of course, we know that what played out in 2023 will be different from 2027. It will be in the interest of Nigerians if Obi and Kwankwaso are willing to come together and wrest power from the APC government. But again, we know the sitting government will not go to sleep and allow the renewed move to work.”

But the LP’s Chief Scribe may be right in his assertion that APC will not fold its hands and watch the merger come to fruition despite the fillers and remarks from the ruling party that it will not lose sleep over the proposed alliance.

Reacting formally to the merger against President Bola Tinubu’s re-election during the 2027 poll, APC National Publicity Director, Bala Ibrahim, recently dismissed the possibility, stressing that; “the underlying and most important factor in that permutation is the word trust, which will be the bane of their agreement.

“Kwankwaso and Peter Obi have tried forming an alliance on several occasions in the past, but their romance didn’t last beyond the bedroom. This is because they are strange bedfellows who can’t sleep in the same room. Both of them have one ambition, which is to lead the country at all costs and neither is willing to surrender the seat to the other simply because there is this superiority complex between them.

“As long as that complex exists, and it is not likely to diminish, there is no going to be any change to warrant the APC having sleepless nights. What they are proposing now is just rhetoric because they are seeing the progress APC is making and the changes happening in the political scene.

“They know that come 2027, the victory of the APC is fait accompli. All they are making is just noise to survive. It is also the ranting of parties destined for doom. So, there is nothing there to give the APC any worry at all. It is a merger that won’t come to pass.”

But, if the APC is mild in its assessment of the workability of the coalition, many Nigerians have concluded that the ambitions of the key actors, especially that of Atiku, haunted by age, would pose the greatest threat and setback.

Asked whether he can sacrifice his 2027 presidential ambition, the response of the former Vice President betrayed his inner thinking when he tactically shifted the decision to his party.

He aversively stressed that; “it would depend on the decision of my party. I can’t make any categorical statement on that. It is the duty of the party to decide on the way to go in the next election.

“Until that time comes. Let us just wait and see how it will turn out. It must not be interpreted like that. I must not be eyeing elections to have meetings with political friends and associates. Currently, we are practising democracy in this country which we fought for with our blood.”

Atiku equally responded on why he is not in any hurry to quit active politics, noting: “Yes, we can’t keep quiet and watch things go wrong. People are suffering and we are committed to making Nigeria a better place. It means that I am not tired of the politics of Nigeria, not at all.

“I am still in active politics in Nigeria, at least, as long as God permits. My age doesn’t stop the young ones from testing their fate. Everybody, irrespective of age, is allowed to aspire to be anybody in the society, politically or otherwise.”

But, if both Atiku and Kwankwaso sounded diplomatically desperate in their refusal to lower their guards in compromising their ambitions, it was a case of hide and seek for Peter Obi.

Dismissing the speculations and misinterpretation of his recent television interview over his readiness to serve as vice president to anyone, Obi had described it as propaganda to deliberately distort the narrative.

He emphasised that though he is not desperate to become president or hold any such exaulted position, he is however determined to partner with those who share his vision for advancing Nigeria’s progress.

He said: “I have been inundated with calls and concerns regarding the interview I granted on television. In that interview, I took the opportunity it provided to explain my position in detail. However, some fifth columnists have resorted to propaganda, deliberately distorting the narrative.

“Let me reiterate clearly what I said, which is on record… I explicitly stated my openness to working with others, provided their intentions were not centred on state capture. I emphasised my commitment to partnering with those who share my vision for advancing Nigeria’s progress.

“I also made it clear that I remain committed to LP, and if anyone wishes to negotiate or join forces, they must disclose their true intentions. When 2027 arrives, if I decide to run for any office, it will not be with those whose sole aim is state capture or merely winning an election.”

In the consideration of many pundits, the response of the major contenders could be rightly or wrongly interpreted as a case of the spirit willing but the body is weak. None of them obviously seems to be wholeheartedly willing to sacrifice their ambitions to become President in 2027.

The fear in many quarters is that the desperation of almost all the political actors will not only scuttle the plan but provide the platform the APC might be exploiting to allegedly penetrate the opposition parties to fuel the leadership crises currently rocking the parties.

While corroborating such an impression in his recent allegation in Ondo State during the flag-off campaign for the party’s governorship candidate, NNPP’s National Chairman, Ajuji Ahmed, claimed that APC is desperately causing division among parties to weaken their structure and take control.

He said: “The APC is doing everything to win the 2027 general election. Certainly, there is evidence everywhere that they are interfering in other parties. But it is left for the political parties to maintain their integrity and ensure that they remain one viable opposition to the APC before and after the 2027 election.”

He however confirmed that NNPP is in collaboration with opposition parties to form an alliance ahead of the 2027 poll, declaring that the ruling APC should be prepared to hand over power, stressing: “So, we have our doors open in such a way that if there is going to be a coalition of all the political parties to go into the election, we are ready for that.”

However, disabusing the minds of Nigerians claiming that APC is sponsoring the crises in the other political parties, Oliver Okpala, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Public Enlightenment to the party’s National Chairman, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, argued that APC is much more concerned about the leadership and affairs of its party.

He told Daily Sun in a chat that; “they are facing issues concerning their party. APC is a principled party that believes in the rule of law and party dynamism. APC has nothing to do with interfering in the affairs of other political parties. It is the other parties that are busybodies, trying to interfere in the affairs of the APC because it is leading, and working under Ganduje.”

In the perception of many political leaders, the planned merger, collapsing of structures, and ultimately the lip services to sacrifice their presidential ambitions will ever remain a pipedream.

“Realistically, Atiku has only 2027 as his last chance to try his luck at becoming the president. He will apparently be too old to contest the 2031 presidential election. Therefore, the implication is that since he will likely throw in everything to actualise his ambition in 2027, he looks doubtful to give up that opportunity. Whatever antics Atiku dangles, it might just be a political gimmick to beguile others,” a politically exposed person told Daily Sun in confidence.

Appraising the situation further, our source also argued that “If Obi, with his Obidient cult followership, still has mathematical chances of making a serious impact in the 2027 election, Kwankwaso may still be on a delusion mission, believing that North West votes may propel him to victory.

“The clash of ambitions will remain the biggest cog in the arrangements for the merger, collapsing of political structures and plan to deputise each other. In all these, we should not forget that President Tinubu still has the prerogative of appointing the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by next year. The person who counted the votes, especially in the Nigeria election decides the winner,” he quipped sarcastically. (Daily Sun)