The All Progressives Congress, on Tuesday, dismissed the potential merger talk between the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar and the standard-bearer of the Labour Party in the election, Peter Obi.
It described Atiku and Obi as desperate politicians who could not be trusted with power.
The ruling party also said it had no doubt the meeting between the two opposition candidates would amount to nothing, saying it was being fuelled by a mutual desperation to ensure President Bola Tinubu did not return to office in 2027.
The National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Felix Morka, made this known in a statement issued in Abuja, titled “Atiku, Obi united by mutual desperation.”
It was reported that Obi, on May 13, visited Atiku at his Abuja residence and the duo met behind closed doors with the viral photographs of the visit on social media. Atiku later revealed this on his X handle, saying, “It was my honour and privilege to host #PeterObi today.”
Obi, the same day, also met with two chieftains of the PDP, the former Senate President, Bukola Saraki and the erstwhile governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido.
In 2019, both Atiku and Obi ran on the PDP joint ticket but were defeated by the former President, Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress.
In the run-up to the 2023 election, Obi left the PDP for the Labour Party and emerged as the standard-bearer, while Atiku contested the election on the ticket of the PDP. The two were defeated by President Tinubu of the APC.
After the Supreme Court affirmed Tinubu’s victory in the 2023 election, Atiku called for unity among major opposition parties, stating his readiness to lead a coalition against Tinubu in 2027.
Reacting on Tuesday to the planned coalition, Morka acknowledged that the meeting of the political allies had further heightened the speculations of a possible alliance between both men and their political parties ahead of 2027.
The APC spokesman, however, maintained that it was unclear whether Obi would be willing to make a comeback to Atiku’s PDP or whether the latter would agree to dump his party to seek “rehabilitation” in Obi’s Labour Party.
He said, “The news of Peter Obi’s return to the PDP would be hardly surprising. His reputation as a political wayfarer is only dwarfed by Atiku’s track record as a veteran political wanderer.
“News of Atiku joining the Labour Party will shock no one as he will be living up to his well-established reputation as the country’s most itinerant politician.
“For now, Utomi’s mega party remains a figment with no offering of tangible accommodation for both men.
“Atiku and Obi are united by their mutual desperation to be President of Nigeria and the ignoble disdain for President Bola Tinubu’s focused and extraordinary commitment to the transformation of our nation.
“Their restless drift in search of convenient party platforms to execute their presidential run only belies the self-indulgent and opportunistic essence of their aspirations.”
He said by their character, Nigerians could not trust both Atiku and Obi with power, as they would not be able to handle national challenges.
“Men without the staying power to build or fix their own parties, who flee at the slightest flicker of internal crisis, cannot possibly be trusted by Nigerians to tackle serious and complex national, political and economic challenges that confront our nation.
“We urge Nigerians to stand fast in their invaluable support of our great party and President Bola Tinubu’s determined commitment to deliver a stronger, secure and more prosperous country for us all,” the party spokesman said.