Akin Osuntokun, the former Director-General of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, stated that Peter Obi would only consider returning to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) if offered the party’s presidential ticket.
This comes after Atiku Abubakar, the PDP’s 2023 presidential candidate, expressed his willingness to support Obi if the party decides to zone the 2027 presidential ticket to the South-East.
“I have said repeatedly and I even said it before the 2023 general elections that if the PDP decides to zone the presidential ticket to the South or South-East specifically, I won’t contest it. As long as it’s the decision of the party, I will abide by it. But I contested the 2023 presidential ticket because it was thrown open to all members of the party,” Atiku stated in a recent interview with BBC Hausa Service.
He added, “If the party decides that it’s the turn of the South-East and Peter Obi is chosen, I won’t hesitate to support him.”
Responding to this, Osuntokun highlighted Obi’s strong support base from the last election and emphasized that returning to the PDP without a presidential ticket would be impractical. He said, “Peter Obi going back to the PDP would have to depend on the circumstances and the assurances from the political godfathers of the PDP. The thing is that it’s unrealistic to expect someone who has run for the president to now accept to be a running mate for whoever assumes the superior position.”
He elaborated on Obi’s unique appeal, particularly among the youth, saying, “If it’s possible to do it like the way they do in the United States by analyzing the demographic groups that support each candidate, we would find a situation in which Obi carried about 90 per cent of the youth population. And if he chooses to be a running mate, those people are going to be disappointed and offended.”
“The only way that Peter Obi could consider returning to the PDP is if he would be given the party’s presidential ticket. Otherwise, he would not embark on a futile exercise. Because if he becomes a running mate in PDP, he will lose a lot of his support. He would be demonized as a sellout. So I can’t see the point of his going back to the PDP other than being its presidential candidate,” Osuntokun concluded.
