Former Kano State Governor and leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has disclosed that northern political leaders carried out a deliberate evaluation of potential partners before selecting former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi as the most capable ally for the 2027 presidential election.
Speaking in a recent interview on Arise TV, Kwankwaso explained that the decision was based on competence, integrity, and the ability to collaborate honestly for national development.
“We looked around together with our leadership in the north to say, okay, who do we think is capable? Who can come and work together with us honestly so that we can move this country? Along the line, we realised that Peter Obi is at the forefront of it. That’s why we all accepted to work together,” Kwankwaso stated.
The revelation comes shortly after both Kwankwaso and Obi formally joined the National Democratic Congress (NDC), following internal issues in their previous platforms. At the party’s national convention in Abuja, Kwankwaso supported the zoning of the NDC’s 2027 presidential ticket to the South, describing it as a move towards fairness, healing, and national cohesion.
Kwankwaso dismissed speculations of underlying rivalry between the two camps, attributing potential friction in political partnerships to personal greed rather than structural problems. He drew from his experience as a former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and Governor of Kano State, where he maintained stable working relationships, including handing over to his then-deputy.
He further anchored the alliance in Nigeria’s political history, citing successful North-Southeast collaborations such as those between Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and NCNC leaders in the First Republic, and President Shehu Shagari with Vice President Alex Ekwueme in the Second Republic.
The partnership combines Kwankwaso’s strong grassroots mobilization and political structure in the North with Obi’s widespread youth appeal and urban support base, positioning the NDC as a formidable opposition force ahead of the 2027 general elections.
This development signals a significant realignment in Nigeria’s opposition politics as various stakeholders prepare for the next electoral cycle.