With the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) zoning its 2027 presidential ticket to the southern region, Professor of Political Science, Jideofor Adibe, has advised presidential hopeful Peter Obi to exercise caution within the African Democratic Congress (ADC) opposition coalition.
Speaking on Channels TV’s The Morning Brief on Tuesday, August 26, Adibe said:
“I wouldn’t want to advise Peter Obi; he has his own advisors. At the end, he has to make his own decisions, but if I were him, I would be extremely suspicious.”
Both the PDP and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have already zoned their 2027 presidential tickets to southerners.
The ADC, however, has yet to finalise its zoning arrangement.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a northern Nigerian and member of the ADC coalition, has expressed interest in running for president in 2027.
This move is seen by many as a potential challenge to southern candidates, including Obi and Rotimi Amaechi, who are also pursuing the presidency under the ADC.
Adibe described Obi as a strategist who considers multiple outcomes before making decisions:
“It’s up to him to know what his own political strategists are telling him and what these moves are, but I believe that once any announcement is made, they create scenarios.
However, in the next couple of months, it will become clearer what informed the PDP’s decision to say they are zoning this issue.”
The professor stressed that Obi’s path to political victory would require vigilance and strategic thinking.
He likened the political process to a chess game, saying:
“In the end, like any chess game, it may work and it may not. We don’t know, and in all this, it is a tug of war.”