Atiku, Obi, El-Rufai adopts ADC as official platform for Coalition

A fresh opposition coalition has reportedly emerged in Nigeria’s political space, with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, ex-Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi, and former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai adopting the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as their official platform.

According to a Bloomberg report, the decision was reached after a high-level meeting held on Tuesday night into the early hours of Wednesday.

A source familiar with the talks confirmed, “They have adopted the African Democratic Congress as the coalition party. All of them, Atiku, Obi, El-Rufai, are working together.”

“The meeting held while Nigerians were asleep, and it was concluded last night.”

The source further revealed that other political figures and stakeholders attended the meeting, where various committees were set up to finalize the operational structure, logistics, and public unveiling plans for the new alliance.

“All the leaders and stakeholders of the coalition were there. They formed committees to dot the Is and cross the Ts, preparing the ground for an official unveiling, which should happen very soon,” the insider added.

Meanwhile, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, during an interview with Arise News, confirmed that while coalition talks were progressing, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was never considered an option for the opposition bloc.

Lawal explained that the PDP’s longstanding internal problems made it unsuitable for the alliance.

“In all the analysis I’ve seen so far, nobody ever thought of adopting PDP as a platform. It has an incurable virus, no antibiotic can fix what ails PDP, and no one wants to move into a house they cannot modify,” he remarked.

He further disclosed that the coalition’s technical committee had been weighing two alternatives, to register a fresh political party or to adopt an existing party with national reach and reform potential.

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“We have technical committees examining both options. As of now, we are nearing a decision, and it seems we’ll soon announce the party we’re moving into, or possibly the registration of a new one,” Lawal stated.

The official unveiling of the new opposition front is expected in the coming weeks.