•Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar
There are indications about increasing hide and seek among the core promoters of the rainbow coalition being put together by some politicians across board to fight President Bola Tinubu for the 2027 presidency.
Some interests within the coalition are increasingly becoming worried because the seeming lukewarm attitude of a few of the leaders, coupled with the opposition by the chieftains of parties initially thought that could be favourably disposed to the idea, reports Nigerian Tribune.
While other key promoters of the coalition at the weekend were quoted to have said they are set for the harmonisation of their structures into the coalition, two camps considered as critical to building the coalition are yet to make a definite move to fuse their machinery into the coalition.
Some inside sources informed our correspondent that leaders of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) involved in the coalition said they had concluded arrangement to collapse the structure of the group into the coalition.
They are said to be waiting on the camp of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and that of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr Peter Obi to concretise the process for the harmonisation of structures.
It would be recalled that Atiku had told PDP governors that the train of the coalition had left the terminus when they declared that the party was not part of the coalition.
A former president of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki had also kicked against any plan to drag the PDP into any form of coalition.
But the ex-vice president said he had no intention of leaving the PDP in the wake of the spasm caused by the defection of his running mate and former governor of Delta State, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa along with other main stakeholders of the party, to the All Progressives Congress (APC) about three weeks ago.
“Our plan is to unveil the new party this month, May 2025. But, it is not sure that it is going to be our final destination,” the source stated.
“However, the loyalists of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar are not likely to come in yet. They are yet to make a final decision on the process of harmonisation. The issue of if he should run again hangs in the balance. This is the main headache,” another source added.
The sources said leaders of the caucus of the CPC, one of the parties that coalesced to form the APC in 2013, said the caucus already has an eye on a presidential hopeful candidate that could lead the coalition against APC in 2027.
But they explained that the identity of the potential candidate is being kept secret for strategic reasons.
“Members of the CPC group are ready to move into the party. They are going in first with ours. In fact, the CPC set has picked their presidential candidate,” the source stated.
Chieftain of the other caucus of the CPC said the members would remain with the APC structures and loyal to President Tinubu and his administration.
In another development, there is uncertainty on the part of the camp of Peter Obi due to the non-committal to the process of harmonisation.
His camp, the sources said, is yet to decide on plans to collapse the structures of the former Anambra State governor into the coalition.
Most of his key foot soldiers are mushroomed under the Obidient Movement within the Labour Party structures.
There are three tendencies struggling for the soul of the Labour Party with one camp led by a caretaker chairman Senator Nenadi Usman, loyal to Governor Alex Otti of Abia State and Peter Obi.
The other faction under Comrade Julius Abure as national chairman has set up a committee to investigate the duo over allegations of anti-party activities while the third faction is led by a former deputy national chairman of the party, Lamidi Apanpa.
According to the sources, “There are still issues surrounding the involvement of the 2023 LP presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi in the coalition. There is no final word from his camp on the coalition because of the role of some external forces backing his aspiration for presidency. So, the question about collapsing his structures into the coalition hangs in the balance. Coupled with this is the crisis rocking the Labour Party.”
Leaders of the coalition are also said to be battling the alleged infiltration of their ranks of all the opposition parties by pro-establishment elements in the bid to frustrate the planned coalition.
“Agents of the presidency have infiltrated all the opposition parties. But, let’s see what the coalition will come up with for starters,” one of the promoters quipped.
