Peter Obi, the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, says the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition is wobbling because it has not resolved key issues around zoning and the rotation of major offices.
Speaking on Wednesday in a YouTube interview with Advocacy for Good Governance, Obi said the coalition must clarify its internal arrangements and agree on a shared national vision before moving forward.
“Today, I’m a member of the Labour Party… and I subscribe to the coalition — the ADC coalition — for the 2027 election and I believe in it,” he said.
“But as much as I believe in it, I need to know the fundamentals that we all agree to respect… there are still some fine lines that we need to respect, where things must be done properly, where we must sit down and talk about where we’re driving the country to.”
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Obi said critical questions — including zoning, the rotation of offices and informal power-sharing arrangements — remain unresolved.
“Today, we have what we can say are unsigned agreements about the presidency, unsigned agreements about rotation of offices… all those things need to be organised,” he added.
“If you don’t do it, you create confusion for the future.”
Obi praises coalition leaders, calls Atiku ‘his leader’
The former Anambra governor expressed confidence in the political figures steering the coalition, singling out former Senate president David Mark for praise. He also described Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president and 2023 PDP presidential candidate, as “my leader”.
“I believe he has the political sagacity to lead the party… people like my own leader, Atiku — someone I have all my respect for, who I believe believes in the good of Nigeria,” Obi said.
‘I’m not desperate to be president’
Obi said his loyalty to the coalition is not contingent on securing the presidential ticket, stressing that his priority is Nigeria’s progress, not personal ambition.
“I’m not desperate to be president of Nigeria,” he said. “I’m desperate to see Nigeria work.”
