NDC Campaign Chief Urges Atiku, Opposition Leaders to Join Obi-Kwankwaso Alliance

Ibrahim Abdulkarim, Director-General of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) Presidential Campaign Council, has called on former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and other opposition leaders to join the alliance backing Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Abdulkarim said opposition parties and political leaders needed to unite behind a common platform to challenge the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the next general election.

Speaking on Arise News, he said the coalition was taking shape within the NDC, with Obi emerging as its presidential candidate and Kwankwaso agreeing to work with him.

“The opposition has to come together for us to win. The opposition have already come together. Nobody said the coalition must happen on ADC. It can happen in NDC, and Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has already dropped his ambition,” Abdulkarim said.

He maintained that the alliance remained open to other opposition figures, including Atiku, whose participation he said could broaden the coalition’s national reach.

“What we are asking for is for other people to join us, including former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, to join all of us, so at least we will have the spread that they think they can add,” he added.

Abdulkarim also dismissed criticism of the NDC’s campaign organisation, arguing that the party’s structure should not be judged against the Obidient movement and other support groups associated with Obi.

“How can you compare a party with a support group? We don’t have any problem. They’re all part of the NDC party. We have more than a thousand support groups like that,” he said.

On concerns about electoral fraud and whether votes would count in 2027, the campaign chief urged Nigerians who lacked confidence in the electoral process to support the NDC. He said the party had developed measures to protect votes but did not provide specific details of those measures in the reported remarks.

Abdulkarim also promised that the party would conduct a peaceful campaign and reach voters across the country.

“We are going to do our campaign peacefully. We are going to go into every corner,” he said.

He added that the NDC intended to reassure voters before the election that their votes would be protected, presenting opposition cooperation and voter confidence as key elements of the party’s campaign strategy.