Obi Meets Atiku, Saraki, Lamido Over Hardship Faced By Nigerians | Independent Newspaper Nigeria

Source: Independent Newspapers Nigeria

ABUJA - The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, on Monday met with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Senate President Bukola Saraki, and a former governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido.

The meeting which held in Abuja, was aimed at finding ways to "reduce the suffering of all Nigerians irrespective of class and location."

A statement by Yunusa Tanko, Chief Spokesman of the Datti Ahmed/Peter Obi Campaign during the election, explained that the meeting was informed by Obi's worry "about the state of the nation and the increasing uncertainty in the living conditions of the poor and underprivileged.

"The 2023 presidential flag bearer of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, has continued to live up to his expressed commitment to the peace and progress of the nation.

"His abiding devotion is to the emergence of a Nigeria that works for all its peoples and where the people are quickly pulled out of poverty," he added.

Tanko continued, "Obi in Abuja on Monday visited some top Nigerians, among whom are former vice president, and PDP presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar; the former Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, and the former governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido.

"In particular, the desperate condition of the downtrodden in our midst was highlighted. "Of particular interest and emphasis in these discussions was the worrisome situation in the Northern parts of the country."

But a source, who was privy to the meeting, said that the meeting may also not be far from the plan for the opposition parties to form a common front ahead of 2027 election.

Recall that Atiku has been in the forefront for the opposition political parties to build a strong coalition ahead of the next election. The source said: "Understand that Atiku has been urging the opposition to have a united front ahead of the 2027.

The meeting between Atiku and Obi may not be unconnected to that call." Atiku had in November last year while receiving a delegation from the national executive committee of the Inter-Party Advisory Council of Nigeria (IPAC) called on opposition parties in the country to form a coalition, adding that Nigeria needs a strong opposition to stop the All Progressives Congress (APC) from turning the country into a one-party state. Atiku had said: "You have come here today to say that we should cooperate in order to promote democracy.

"But the truth of the matter is that our democracy is fast becoming a one-party system, and of course, you know that when we have a one-party system, we should just forget about democracy.

"We have all seen how the APC is increasingly turning Nigeria into a dictatorship of one party. "If we don't come together to challenge what the ruling party is trying to create, our democracy will suffer for it, and the consequences of it will affect the generations yet unborn.

The project of protecting democracy in our country is not about just one man." Also, while reacting to the Senegal election, which produced 44-year-old Bassirou Diomaye Faye as president of that country, the former vice president had on April 1, called on opposition political parties in Nigeria to learn from the exercise and form a coalition ahead of the 2027 general election.