Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
The much expected alliance between the Labour Party and the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP for the 2023 presidential poll, is dead and buried, Ikengaonline can authoritatively report.
This was confirmed by the Director-General of Peter Obi’s Presidential Campaign Organisation, Dr Doyin Okupe.
According to Okupe, who is the ‘placeholder’ as Obi’s running mate, the merger talks died about a month ago following the inability of the NNPP negotiators to respond convincingly to a genuine question raised by the LP camp.
Okupe who featured on Politics Today, a current affairs programme on Channels Television, Tuesday night, disclosed that the negotiation became deadlocked when the LP side queried the justice in the emergence of another Muslim Northerner succeeding President Muhammadu Buhari who is also a Muslim from the same North.
According to him, it is unfair and the height of injustice against other geopolitical zones for a Muslim from the North to succeed another Muslim from the same North in a country of six geopolitical zones, and where religion is a serious factor in its national life.
The former Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, flayed Kwankwaso over his recent controversial interview where he claimed that the North would not vote for a presidential candidate from the South-East.
He accused him of whipping tribal sentiments, contending that someone who desires to lead a multi-ethnic country like Nigeria should not be clannish.
The Campaign DG wondered the barometer with which Kwankwaso measured political seniority to arrive at his erroneous conclusion that he is senior to Obi.
Okupe disclosed that Obi had started considering drafting a vibrant, sound and young Northern Muslim as his running mate, asserting the he can not fly with Kwankwaso who is self overrated.
He hinted that Obi’s search has beamed on Senator Datti Baba-Ahmed, and other like-minds from the North.
“He (Baba-Ahmed) is being considered, others are being considered too. These things will be decided this week. He is being considered along with other people whom we have engaged and we have talked with.
“The emphasis here is this, we are looking for a young, vibrant politician of northern extraction with a measure of intellect, sound background, pedigree and education. That is what we are looking at.”
