Months after opposition leaders agreed in Ibadan to unite behind a single presidential candidate, the coalition dream appears to be cracking, with Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar and Seyi Makinde now emerging under different political platforms ahead of the 2027 elections.
The opposition is, however, making another attempt to revive the unity project, with political advocacy group G100 fixing August 18 for a major “Summit of Opposition Parties” in Abuja.
The fresh move comes against the backdrop of the Ibadan Declaration, where opposition politicians had agreed on the need to work together and ultimately present a single presidential candidate capable of challenging President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress in 2027.
But that agreement has yet to translate into the much-anticipated single-candidate arrangement.
Instead, the opposition camp has become increasingly fragmented, with three of the biggest names being associated with different political platforms.
Peter Obi is now the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Atiku Abubakar has emerged as the candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), while Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has emerged under the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
The development has thrown fresh uncertainty into the opposition’s much-publicised coalition project, raising questions over whether the parties can still bury their differences and rally behind one candidate before the 2027 presidential contest.
It is against this backdrop that G100 is seeking to reopen the conversation.
The group disclosed that it had already embarked on a series of closed-door consultations with the leadership of six opposition parties and political factions as part of efforts to rebuild a united front.
The parties include the ADC, APM, NDC, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and Social Democratic Party (SDP).
According to a statement signed by Salihu Moh Lukman on behalf of G100, the consultations involved national chairmen, presidential candidates and their running mates.
The group described the meetings as “frank, constructive and encouraging”, saying there was a growing recognition among opposition leaders that they needed to work more closely together ahead of the 2027 elections.
The consultations were deliberately kept away from the media, G100 explained, to give the parties room to negotiate freely without the pressure of premature public commentary.
But while the opposition talks have produced fresh optimism, the reality on the political ground remains complicated.
The Ibadan Declaration, which was expected to lay the foundation for a united opposition challenge, had raised hopes that the various camps would eventually sacrifice individual ambitions for a common presidential ticket.
That expectation has now been tested by the emergence of competing presidential candidacies.
With Obi, Atiku and Makinde now attached to separate political platforms, the opposition faces the difficult task of reconciling powerful personalities and competing political interests before the final battle for the presidency.
G100 said the August 18 summit would seek to address precisely these challenges and work towards operationalising the principles contained in the Ibadan Declaration.
The group is promoting what it calls the “Doctrine of Necessary Democratic Opposition”, which seeks to persuade opposition parties to place the larger national interest above individual and partisan ambitions.
G100 stressed that the opposition could not afford to allow political differences to destroy the possibility of building a credible alternative to the ruling government.
The August 18 Abuja gathering could therefore become a crucial moment for the opposition: whether it can rescue the unity dream born in Ibadan, or whether the emergence of multiple presidential contenders will finally bury the coalition project.
With 2027 drawing closer, the opposition now faces its biggest political test — unite behind one force against Tinubu or go into the presidential race divided.
