Mr. Majeed Dahiru, political analyst and columnist, has said President Bola Tinubu’s administration could be brought to an end in 2027, if former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai can rallies northern political forces behind Mr. Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the last election.
Dahiru said this when he appeared on The Morning Brief aired on Channels Television.
He highlighted recent opposition alignments and El-Rufai’s strategic relevance ahead of the next general election.
“If I may put it straight. The day El-Rufai decides and can galvanise the opinion moulders in the North to zero in on Peter Obi, for instance, as the candidate, that will be the end of the Tinubu administration,” Dahiru stated.
Moreover, his remark comes amid ongoing talks about potential coalitions to among opposition forces to unseat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Recall that the situation took a new turn on Wednesday when Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori and former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, alongside several PDP officials, defected to the APC.
While weighing in, Dahiru noted the reported resistance from PDP governors to opposition coalition efforts, attributing it to regional loyalty.
“That’s because the PDP governors’ preferred candidate for the next election is President Bola Tinubu of the APC — because of southern solidarity. The bulk of the PDP governors are from the South. One of their own is in power. They can’t work against one of their own. It’s not possible.”
He cited historical examples to underscore the role of regional interests in Nigerian politics.
“In 2003, the AD (Alliance for Democracy) didn’t field a presidential candidate because of Obasanjo. That is the nature of Nigerian politics.
“When Yar’Adua became president in 2007, a number of ANPP (All Nigeria Peoples Party) governors moved to the PDP. Two governors even married his daughters to gain a footing in the PDP. It has always been like that.”
Dahiru also addressed El-Rufai’s recent departure from the APC to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), attributing it to deeper tensions with the presidency.
“El-Rufai has a grouse against the president — a legitimate grouse — because he worked for the president. Hate him or love him, he has a basis to be angry,” Dahiru said.
“He has been working assiduously to undermine the president, particularly in the Muslim North, where he is like the caliph to Buhari. He’s the brainbox of the Muslim North.”
He hinted at a broader political strategy by El-Rufai, possibly involving an endorsement of a candidate from the South, especially the Southeast.
“Let me give him a tip: if he really wants to sit at the back of the president, what he should do — and I think they may already be on that path — is convince the Muslim North to look towards the South for a candidate. Specifically, the Southeast.
“If he’s able to do that — and I know he can; he has the capacity — to shift support to someone like Peter Obi, then that will be the end of the Tinubu administration”.
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