By Eteteonline
Peter Gregory Obi is the former governor of Anambra State (2007-2014). He was a member of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) before defecting to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In 2019, he was nominated as vice presidential candidate of the PDP to run with Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in the presidential election. But the PDP lost to Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Peter Obi abandoned the PDP and moved to the Labour Party (LP), where he was given the party’s presidential ticket in the 2023 general election. He finished third in the presidential election behind Atiku Abubakar of the PDP and Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the APC, who won the election.
Although he finished third, Pete Obi’s performance was stunning. He won in the South East, most of South-South, Lagos, the stronghold of the APC, Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, and Plateau State in North-central Nigeria.
His large political followers, known as Obidient Movement, made up of people under 30 years of age, want Obi to repeat the same feat in the 2027 presidential election, hoping that he will win.
However, it is not clear which platform Obi will use to contest the 2027 election. His Labour Party is in crisis with many factions led by different people (Julius Aburi, Lamidi Apapa, and Nenadi Usman).
Following the confusion in the Labour Party, Obi has joined a coalition spearheaded by the African Democratic Congress (ADC), without renouncing his membership of the Labour Party.
According to reports, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has offered him the vice-presidential position. If the ADC ticket is still available, Abubakar is anticipated to run for it. According to analysts, talks with Atiku center on Obi becoming running mate in 2027, with Atiku promising to support Obi in 2031 and serving only one term.
However, Obi’s team is not happy with this plan, claiming that the nation’s sentiment favors a Southern candidate in 2027 and that Atiku’s one-term commitment might not hold up. Coalition leaders are still skeptical despite Obi’s own pledge to serve only one term if selected.
The insider claims that Obi’s group has also expressed worries about being left out of the alliance they helped form. The Obidient Movement has not been entirely persuaded by the ADC that the party was not set up to provide an Atiku presidency. Obi needs to persuade the Obedient Movement as well. It will be difficult for him to pitch anything other than a 2027 presidential campaign at this time. His conversations with Jonathan and Atiku have been drawn out for months because of this.
The PDP leadership is also pursuing Obi in hopes of getting him back on the party’s platform before 2027. Political observers believe Obi may resign in favor of Jonathan, who is expected to run for office in 2027. Obi’s predicament, meanwhile, is the possibility of resigning for Jonathan in 2027 while facing the uncertainty of his own political destiny.
Senate Minority Leader and PDP chieftain Senator Abba Moro recently confirmed that Jonathan, former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi, and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde were being urged by senior PDP members to run for president in 2027 on the party’s platform.
Presently, Peter Obi is in a dilemma as to the future of his presidential ambition and what platform he will use to actualize his presidential aspiration.
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