Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is facing criticism over his alleged role ahead of the 2027 general election, after the Yoruba Ronu Leadership Forum accused him of secretly working to secure President Bola Tinubu’s re-election.
Responding to the claims, Mr Obasanjo’s former Political Adviser, Dr Akin Osuntokun, dismissed the allegations as unfounded, insisting that Mr Obasanjo remains one of the principal forces behind the opposition alliance.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE Television on Sunday, Mr Osuntokun said Mr Obasanjo personally brokered the alliance between Mr Obi and Mr Kwankwaso and continues to support their joint presidential ticket.
“If you can say that Obasanjo is supporting any ticket, it is the Peter Obi–Kwankwaso ticket. As a matter of fact, he is the principal sponsor of that ticket,” Mr Osuntokun declared.
The latest disagreement over Mr Obasanjo’s political positioning comes only days after the former president reignited his long-running feud with African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Abubakar Atiku, by alleging in a public letter that the former vice president supported attempts to remove him from office while he served as president.
Mr Atiku, through his media aide, Phrank Shaibu, rejected the allegation, insisting that his opposition to Mr Obasanjo’s failed third-term bid remains one of the defining moments of Nigeria’s democratic history.
Rejecting claims that the former president was secretly backing President Tinubu, Mr Osuntokun described the allegation as illogical.
“How do you then suggest that he is secretly working for Tinubu? It does not make sense to me.
“I think that claim is absolute bunkum. The evidence is in the public domain. Obasanjo is playing a major role in supporting the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket. He was the one who brought the two men together,” he said.
Yoruba Ronu accuses Obasanjo
In a statement issued on Sunday and signed by its President, Akin Malaolu, the Yoruba Ronu Leadership Forum alleged that Mr Obasanjo’s recent political interventions were carefully designed to weaken the opposition rather than strengthen it.
The group pointed to Mr Obasanjo’s recent letter to former Ogun State Governor, Segun Osoba, in which the former president alleged that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar mobilised the late Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Umar Na’Abba, in an attempt to impeach him during his administration.
According to the forum, the letter was not merely a personal attack on Mr Atiku but part of a broader strategy to destabilise the opposition ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
“What many perceive as an attack on Atiku is, in reality, a deliberate assault on the opposition parties in Nigeria,” Mr Malaolu said.
Forum questions Na’Abba reference
The group also criticised Mr Obasanjo for invoking the name of the late Mr Na’Abba, arguing that the former Speaker could no longer defend himself against the allegation.
“By dragging the name of Ghali Umar Na’Abba into his allegation, Obasanjo knows too well that the late Speaker is incapable of a right of reply.
“To respond to Obasanjo, he has to be resurrected from the dead, which the former President knows is impossible,” the statement read.
Alleged support for Tinubu
The forum further alleged that Mr Obasanjo’s public support for the presidential aspirations of Mr Peter Obi and former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso was merely a political smokescreen intended to conceal his alleged support for President Tinubu’s second-term ambition.
“By this letter, Obasanjo has only confirmed speculations that he is working for his kinsman, President Bola Tinubu, to actualise his second-term ambition,” Mr Malaolu stated.
The group claimed that before the opposition coalition settled on its political platform, consultations were held with several national leaders, including Mr Obasanjo, but alleged that the former president was determined to ensure Mr Obi emerged as the coalition’s presidential candidate.
It further alleged that when those efforts failed, Mr Obasanjo facilitated political realignments that eventually resulted in Mr Obi and Mr Kwankwaso contesting on the NDC platform.
The forum also alleged, without providing evidence, that Mr Obasanjo was collaborating with a member of President Tinubu’s family to build political structures that would aid the President’s re-election.
‘He brought the ticket together’
When pressed on whether Mr Obasanjo directly negotiated the alliance, Mr Osuntokun maintained there was no ambiguity about the former president’s role.
“Yes, of course. That’s what I said. He brokered the ticket between Obi and Kwankwaso. Both of them are quite close to him. It is a ticket that makes sense and has the potential to make a significant impact in the 2027 election.
“I can tell you for free that he was the one who brought the ticket together,” he added.
Mr Osuntokun also disclosed that discussions on a possible Obi-Kwankwaso partnership predated the current political arrangement.
“Kwankwaso could have teamed up with Obi four years ago. I remember him saying that if they had agreed then, they would probably have had an arrangement in which they would each spend one term in office, and Kwankwaso would now have been the beneficiary,” he added.
As political activities gather momentum ahead of the 2027 general election, major opposition figures have intensified consultations and alliance-building efforts aimed at presenting a formidable challenge to the APC.
Mr Obasanjo, who has maintained close relationships with several leading opposition politicians, has increasingly become the subject of speculation over his preferred political direction, with Sunday’s conflicting claims further highlighting the intense political manoeuvring already shaping the race for Nigeria’s highest office.
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