Former Anambra State governor Peter Obi and ex-Kano State governor Rabiu Kwankwaso have increased efforts to clinch a united presidential ticket on the African Democratic Congress platform by gathering northern leaders under a one-term power rotation agreement.
According to many party sources, the duo is promoting a “one-term” agenda to persuade key stakeholders in the North to back their coalition and move support away from former Vice President Atiku Abubakar ahead of the party’s primaries.
According to sources, the resumed negotiations are part of the two camps’ larger aim to cement northern support for a southern presidency in 2027, with Obi expected to serve a single term if the agreement is successful.
The findings revealed that, while the ADC is embroiled in a leadership disagreement and awaits a Supreme Court decision, presidential contenders in the party have continued consultations and mobilization efforts.
It was gathered that Kwankwaso’s camp had intensified its movement in the last two weeks, meeting traditional rulers and other major stakeholders who had rejected President Bola Tinubu’s second term.
The former governor’s men had been telling northern stakeholders to play fair politics by supporting the South to complete its eight years, warning that backing Atiku again might not favor the North’s future political prospects.
Kwankwaso and Obi’s camps initiated the combined ticket campaign before the former Kano governor joined the ADC on March 30, 2026.
On April 20, supporters of the former governors formed the Obi-Kwankwaso Movement to advance their candidacy ahead of the ADC primaries.
Meanwhile, Atiku, Obasanjo’s vice president from 1999 to 2007, stated that the 2027 presidential election will be his final bid at the presidency.
Speaking with The PUNCH about the Obi-Kwankwaso drive in the North, an insider revealed that Kwankwaso and Obi had penetrated several ADC and northern leaders, swaying them away from Atiku.
According to the ADC official, certain northern leaders who support the opposition party have expressed their support for Kwankwaso, contrary to their previous plan to favor Atiku.
He said, “What we’re canvassing is fairness; the South should be allowed to complete its eight years. The North completed its eight years before Tinubu took over power.
“While we have seen that Tinubu’s administration is a disaster, that should not rob the entire South of its deserved eight years. What we need is to elect another southerner as the next president in 2027, and that is why we are canvassing for Obi, who, luckily, has promised one term.
“We have been convincing some northern leaders to accept Obi’s one-term proposal and support him. RMK (Kwankwaso) is working on this, and some of our leaders in the North have genuinely thrown their weight behind him.
“From our end, the committee set up by Obi and Kwankwaso on their joint ticket is making plans to formalize Obi’s one-term promise and make it public.
“Kwankwaso too is driving the one-term promise among northern leaders, but I think he needs to do more on Obi’s part to ensure that ‘an agreement is an agreement.’
“We want major northern stakeholders to see that he (Obi) is not playing games. But if he eventually becomes president and decides to renege on his agreement, we have the mechanism to remove him.
“The North has the voting bloc to do so. That is why some northern leaders prefer Goodluck Jonathan to contest, but the former president is reluctant to run.”
Similarly, a former Kwara State House of Representatives member and supporter of Atiku’s presidential campaign, who talked with The PUNCH on the condition of anonymity, recognized Obi-Kwankwaso’s efforts to persuade northern politicians to endorse their plan.
The ex-lawmaker revealed that Kwankwaso was the driving force behind the mobilization of northern leaders against Atiku and that the former governor intended to become president by 2031 if Obi fulfilled his one-term promise.
He said, “We know their every move, but no offense is taken. It is a normal political gimmick, and we are all marketing our individual aspirants. But there will be a convergence in the next two to three weeks.
“Atiku is the biggest politician in the North, and northern leaders are in his support, as they usually do. RMK is the one meeting northern leaders and trying to convince them to support the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket. He wants to be president in 2031 after Obi’s one term, if he fulfills it.
“The good thing is that all the aspirants have agreed to work with whoever emerges as the party’s candidate. The most important thing is to sack Tinubu, and we are going to achieve that.”
However, Mark Adebayo, the national spokesperson for the Coalition of United Political Parties and an ADC chieftain, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, confirmed that Atiku was facing growing internal opposition within the ADC as southern presidential hopefuls intensified efforts to block his path to the party’s 2027 ticket.
However, Adebayo expressed doubt that Atiku could be outmanoeuvred in the campaign for the presidential ticket.
The ADC chieftain stated, “I am aware that there is a growing storm within the ADC, especially among southern aspirants who are trying to strike deals with northern heavyweights such as Rabiu Kwankwaso and former governors Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto) and even Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna).
“Their aim is to secure substantial delegate votes from the North and combine them with their support base in the South in a bid to challenge Atiku.
“Peter Obi is said to be working in that direction, while Rotimi Amaechi is also consulting widely to secure the backing of influential northern politicians within the ADC, hoping to split Atiku’s delegate votes in their favor.
“However, Atiku is also working round the clock. He positioned himself strongly within the ADC long ago, and the party’s existing structure appears to favor him at the moment.
“That said, party leaders will play a decisive role in the coming weeks through meetings, consultations, and efforts to reach a consensus.
“However, such a consensus may fail, given that some of the personalities involved are not known for stepping down easily for others. All indications, therefore, point to the ADC eventually conducting direct primaries. That is the situation as it stands.”
