Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, is set to join the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to pursue his presidential ambition in the 2027 elections.
Discussions around Obi’s formal entry into the ADC have advanced significantly, with party structures aligning to accommodate his political base and the wider Obidient movement.
The ADC is seen as a viable vehicle for presenting a united front against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027, with Obi’s entry expected to heighten the stakes at primaries.
Other frontrunners in the ADC-led coalition include Atiku Abubakar and Rotimi Amaechi.
Obi has previously stated that he would serve only one term if elected president in 2027.
The coalition’s emergence is seen as a significant realignment in Nigerian politics, with the potential to challenge the APC’s hold on power.
Sam Amadi, a close ally of Obi, believes that if the coalition remains intact and disciplined, it could end the APC’s grip on power by 2027.
This medium gathered that Peter Obi’s loyalists have already begun taking strategic positions within the ADC coalition.
Party insiders point to the recent defection of Ireti Kingibe, the senator representing the Federal Capital Territory, and Nenadi Usman, who co-chairs the Kaduna State Working Committee of the multiparty coalition, as evidence that groundwork is being laid ahead of Obi’s expected formal move.
Meanwhile, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC’s national publicity secretary, said the party is focused on strengthening its internal structures nationwide ahead of 2027.
Speaking with BusinessDay, Abdullahi said the immediate priority is organisational consolidation rather than zoning or ticket permutations.
On whether the party has resolved the sensitive issue of zoning its national offices and presidential ticket, he simply said, “Those will come up later.”
Abdullahi disclosed that the party is inclined towards a consensus approach in selecting its presidential candidate but would not hesitate to conduct primaries if consensus proves elusive. “Right now, what we are doing is engineering the party’s structures and membership drive,” he said.
“For the presidential candidate, we are working on consensus. It is only when that fails that we can think of conducting primaries for the candidates to emerge.”