The opposition forces plotting to dislodge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his All Progressives Congress (APC) from power in 2027 are not leaving anything to chance.

Last week, moves by those against the president and his 2027 ambition took a different turn with the formal unveiling of the platform- African Democratic Congress (ADC) – that the coalition plans to use to prosecute the electoral battle.

At the unveiling, former Senate President, David Mark was announced as the ADC Interim National Chairman, while former Minister of Interior and former governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola was named Interim National Secretary.

It is roughly about 20 months to the conduct of another presidential election. President Tinubu has so far kept mum on whether he would seek a second term. However, he has continued to acknowledge and welcome the endorsements he has been receiving from party men and other Nigerians across the country, giving a clear indication that he would run again in 2027.

Expectedly, the plot to dislodge President Tinubu is being spearheaded by northerners, with the strategies bearing similar characteristics with those against former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.

But the ruling APC too, appears not to be leaving anything to chance. The party, Sunday Sun gathered, is equally making efforts to ensure to ensure it does not lose any of its serving governors to the coalition, while working on attracting more to its fold.

The only difference between what played out in the past and what is happening now is that unlike in 2013, when a new party, which came out of a merger was birthed in furtherance of the 2015 electoral battle, this time, it is a coalition operating on the platform of an existing political party, a development some have said might pose a serious challenge to the actualisation of its primary objective- sack of Tinubu and APC from the Aso Rock Presidential Villa.

But a senior member of the coalition told Sunday Sun in confidence that those thinking that the movement might not achieve much are living in the past.

He said the principal chieftains of the coalition were already moving to attract some serving governors and members of the National Assembly from the ruling party and the Peoples Democratic party (PDP) to its fold, noting that they were more than battle ready to wrest power from the Tinubu administration in 2027.

Said he: “There are different modes of transportation. You can decide to go by land, by air or by sea. What is paramount is to arrive at the desired destination safely. And with what we are doing, we are more than convinced that we will make it in the end.

“Last year, when I told you that we were talking to Aregbesola, you did not seem to believe me. But you have seen it now. I remember telling you last December too that two years was long enough to plan President Tinubu’s ouster. Are you not seeing it unfolding gradually? Slow and steady, we will get there.

“I can also tell you that we are also discussing with members of the APC – important members for that matter, including governors and serving federal lawmakers. But we won’t give out our strategies,” the source added.

Asked to be specific on who the coalition members were discussing with and when, he retorted: “You know I won’t tell you that, because I have not been authorised to do so.”

Corroborating his position, another member of the coalition and former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of Benue State, Dr Alex Adum, confirmed to Sunday Sun in an exclusive interview at the weekend that he had just resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He disclosed that there are more prospects in the arrangement they currently have than having just a merger.

“What we have is bigger than a merger. This is a coalition of independent Nigerians from all walks of life. We have active and non active politicians, retired military officers, civil society organisations, lecturers, students and all Nigerians.

“In the past, we built roads with bitumen. Today, we are building with cement. When we were building with cement, was it because there was no bitumen? No! Society is dynamic and evolving, therefore, strategies too will have to change. So, the fact that we did not do a merger does not make our coalition less strategic, less formidable. Between 2015 and now is 10 years, so, the time is long enough to review strategy and that is what we have done.

“There was no way we would have done a merger because the ruling party has infiltrated the existing opposition parties, where selected individuals to do their bidding have been brought over. So, they (APC and presidency) didn’t see it coming. We proved bookmakers wrong. We took the APC and the presidency by surprise,” he added.

When told that the law does not allow an individual to belong to two parties, Dr Adum further said “well, it pays people like Festus Keyamo to make such noise, even when they know they are not making sense. They raise all kinds of things. Rivers State lawmakers defected openly to APC. But the Supreme Court’s ruling is that because they have not been registered by the APC, they are not members of the APC. Again, Senator Mark is the only person so far among us that has registered with ADC, and he resigned his membership of PDP before doing that. Look, I have also resigned my membership of the PDP. Ameachi has resigned from the APC. So, we know what we are doing. We are smarter than the APC and presidency. I have a PhD in law. I have read the constitution of all the parties, so let them be building castles in the air. When we get to the bridge, we will cross it.

“But I can assure you, we are ahead of them. They will continue to play a second fiddle role until we win the election. When we announced we were going to unveil our platform at Wells Carlton Hotel, they waylaid us. Did we not eventually unveil the platform the same day? They never believed we could pull it through. So, they are stunned.”

Sunday Sun indeed gathered that patrons of the coalition are already making concerted efforts to woo others, especially some aggrieved APC members to their side.

“APC is not a party fit for Nigeria. We know where we can deal with President Tinubu in terms of his failures in the North. We are also hoping that he would commit more blunders as we go on. We are confident that with what we have on ground, we will defeat them (APC). We are talking to the aggrieved APC members and Labour Party. We are doing all these because we have since realised that it is the only way to defeat Tinubu. And we will defeat him,” the source added.

Asked about the financial war chest and where the presidential candidate is likely to come from, a former federal lawmaker, who is also associated with the coalition, said: “When Nigerians are desirous of making a change happen, they go out of their way to make it happen. Just wait and see. As per the candidate, we have yet to decide. But let me through your medium appeal to Nigerians that we shall be giving them the best, based on competence and capacity as a strong alternative to the callous maladministration we are currently witnessing. “

Meanwhile, the South-East PDP is already weighing its options, following the decision of the national headquarters of the party to recognise Senator Samuel Anyanwu against the position of the geopolitical zone.

Speaking to Sunday Sun on the matter, a close confidant of one of the leaders of the party in the zone, told Sunday Sun that the action of the party was akin to throwing the entire Igbo under the bus because of one individual.

“When Anyanwu left the position to contest, it was the PDP NWC that met and asked the South- East PDP to nominate a candidate to complete Anyanwu’s tenure in line with the traditions and constitution of the party.

“Very importantly, it needs to be underscored that contrary to media hype that PDP is on the way to calm and recovery, the party’s trouble is just beginning. The party, by handing over its structures to those working for external forces to undermine and extinguish it, has actually prepared itself for final destruction. These are people who have publicly bragged severally that they would work for the ruling party’s presidential candidate; those who by implication swore to undermine its interest, and it is the same group that it has finally handed itself over to for final decimation and burial.

“Well, I cannot say where we are headed for now, but we are already weighing our options. As a zone, the South-East has the right to chart a new political trajectory away from the party. It gave the party a condition of continued membership. The party, by throwing the zone under the bus has explicitly told the block that they are not needed anymore. In fact, those at the meeting said that Governor Bala Muhammed told Chief Ali Odefa, the party’s South-East zonal Chairman that he could as well resign and the zone could go if they so wish,” the source added. (Sunday Sun)