Former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, has addressed speculation that he could step down in favour of his northern rival, Atiku Abubakar, ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), said while analysts and political speculators were free to continue with their projections, the possibility of him stepping down for Atiku was not a decision he could make as an individual.
Speaking in an interview with Arise TV, Obi was asked whether he would be willing to abandon his presidential ambition in favour of Atiku.
He explained that the issue had moved beyond the personal ambitions of the two politicians, as Obi and Atiku were candidates of different political parties.
“Do you know where we are now? Where we are now is that I’m a candidate, my leader Atiku is a candidate of another party, so you are talking about two parties coming together; it’s no longer me or me, as you are now talking about parties coming together,” Obi said.
“All those parties have candidates. So, it is a discussion. It is no longer me, as Peter, talking. It is like a situation where two corporations are trying to come together. It is no longer something where the two CEOs go for a drink and say, ‘We are going to work together’. They need to look at how to bring these two corporations together.”
Obi’s comments come amid renewed efforts by opposition politicians to form a common platform capable of mounting a strong challenge to President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 presidential election.
In 2025, Obi, Atiku and other opposition leaders were involved in a coalition that adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as its political platform, fuelling expectations that the former allies could once again unite ahead of the 2027 election.
However, the coalition has not resulted in Obi and Atiku contesting the 2027 presidential election on the same platform, leaving the question of whether either politician would eventually step aside in favour of the other unresolved.
