FORMER presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar have dismissed speculations of a potential political merger following their recent meeting on Saturday, November 30, in Adamawa State.
The leaders, who were together at the American University of Nigeria (AUN) in Yola, having breakfast together, emphasised that their encounter was purely a social and academic engagement, not a precursor to any political alliance ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The ICIR reported that Obi was to deliver a keynote address at the American University of Nigeria (AUN) 20th-anniversary celebration and 16th Founder’s Day on Saturday in Yola. Abubakar owns the university.
Obi praised the resilience of the university’s students for choosing to pursue their education in Nigeria despite the rising trend of emigration, popularly known as japa.
He lauded their commitment to education as a tool for national development, stressing the need for competent, compassionate, and visionary leadership to transform Nigeria’s fortunes.
Obi said: “I commended the students of the American University of Nigeria for their resilience and dedication to staying in Nigeria to study and learn, rather than joining the trend of ‘japa’ – a reality now prevalent among many young people in our land.
“During my address, I emphasised the critical role of leadership in national development, underlining the need for competence, compassion, and capacity to transform our nation from consumption to production,” he said.
Drawing comparisons with countries like Indonesia, Singapore, India, Vietnam, and the Philippines, Obi noted that transformational leadership enabled these nations to achieve significant improvements in their human development indices and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita within a decade.
He reiterated that determined and visionary leadership could achieve similar outcomes for Nigeria.
He lauded Abubakar for his contributions to advancing education and human development.
The ICIR reports that Abubakar and Obi’s public reunion fueled speculation of a possible political merger, given their shared history as candidate and running mate, respectively, for the 2019 presidential election under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
However, representatives of both men were quick to dismiss such rumours.
Atiku’s spokesman, Paul Ibe, on Saturday, November 30, clarified that the meeting was a cordial reunion between two friends, and not a political strategy session.
He said, “Let us not jump the gun. The fact is that Obi accepted to be the keynote speaker at the 20th anniversary of AUN and the 16th Founder’s Day, which was a milestone. Obi is part of that celebration.
“The university was founded by Atiku Abubakar, who was more like his host. But people think it is because of politics. We all know our friends. The truth is that politics cannot separate friends.
“So Atiku invited him to breakfast and from there, they went for the programme. I think that is what happened.”
Similarly, Obi’s media aide, Ibrahim Umar, described the insinuations as laughable.
“No, there was nothing like that. They just invited him (Obi) to deliver a speech there. It has nothing to do with politics. Of course, you know people will always assume things,” he explained.
Obi and Atiku have taken divergent political paths since the 2019 election with Obi joining the LP in 2022 and finishing third in the 2023 presidential race behind Atiku and eventual winner, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M