2027: Opposition Working on Single Candidate to Challenge Tinubu, Lukman Says

A former Director-General of the Progressive Governors Forum, Salihu Lukman, says a framework is being developed to enable opposition parties to present a single presidential candidate against President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 general election.

Lukman, a former APC chieftain, said opposition parties must recognise that their primary political contest is with the ruling party rather than with one another.

He made the disclosure during an interview with Arise News, explaining that a proposal had been presented to opposition leaders for consideration.

According to him, the proposed framework is designed to bring opposition parties together and enable them to present a united front to Nigerians ahead of the 2027 election.

“The ultimate objective is that we want to have one candidate, but it cannot be by declaration. They have to sit down and agree on the criteria they are going to apply in determining that candidate. They will agree among themselves,” Lukman said.

He argued that opposition politicians must first decide whether they merely want to participate in the election or genuinely want to win and form the next government.

“Nobody will dictate it to them,” he said, stressing that the process of selecting a common candidate would have to be based on criteria agreed upon by the participating parties and candidates.

Lukman said the opposition’s decision should also be guided by the realities of winning a presidential election rather than the personal ambitions of individual politicians.

“At the end of the day, there will only be one president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The question they need to answer themselves is: Do they just want to be candidates, or do they want to win the election to become president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?” he said.

He maintained that opposition parties would need to work together if they hoped to defeat the APC in 2027.

“They have to work together, and the primary opponent is the APC and President Bola Tinubu,” Lukman said.

He warned against framing former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and former Anambra State governor Peter Obi as the main political opponents of one another, arguing that such an approach could undermine the opposition’s broader objective.

“As far as we are concerned, we are putting forward a structure, and we are putting a proposal to them to consider, which will lead to the formation of that structure that will enable them to work as a united body,” he said.

Lukman said the ultimate goal was to give Nigerians a credible alternative to the ruling APC in 2027.

He added that the opposition should provide voters with a candidate capable of attracting broad support across the country.

“We believe Nigerians deserve better,” Lukman said.

“We believe that the 2027 election should present a credible option for Nigeria in such a way that Nigerians can have confidence to queue behind that candidate, vote for that candidate, and vote out the APC and President Bola Tinubu.”

The proposal comes amid growing efforts by opposition parties and political groups to build alliances ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

However, whether major opposition figures and parties can agree on a common candidate remains a major political challenge, given the competing ambitions and structures within the opposition camp.