A prominent stakeholder in the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Buba Galadima, has dismissed speculations of a possible merger between opposition parties, insisting that only individuals, not political parties, can come together to challenge the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Speaking to The Guardian on the current political realignments, Galadima ruled out any coalition between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), and NNPP ahead of the 2027 general elections.
According to him, both the PDP and LP have been compromised and are no longer viable opposition forces.
“You should know that PDP is not merging with anybody because PDP is a branch of APC. Nobody needs to tell you that. The Labour Party has been taken over. So, only individuals can merge, I mean, can come together and go under one umbrella,” Galadima stated.
Calls For A Different Approach To Opposing Tinubu
Naija News reports that his remarks come on the heels of the defection of former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, from APC to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), a move widely seen as part of efforts to build a strong opposition coalition ahead of 2027.
However, Galadima cautioned against a repeat of the 2015 political alignment that led to the emergence of Muhammadu Buhari and later, Bola Tinubu, as presidents.
“But you should also know that it is not good for us to commit the mistakes of 2014 or 2013, just to remove Tinubu for removal’s sake, because you may remove Tinubu as you removed Buhari, and end up using torchlight during daylight looking for Tinubu,” he warned.