ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso has revealed why northern political leaders aligned with Peter Obi ahead of the 2027 presidential race, saying the North carefully assessed potential allies before settling on Obi as the most capable partner.
Speaking during an interview on Arise Television, Kwankwaso dismissed suggestions of an underground rivalry between both camps within the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), insisting the alliance was built on trust, strategy and shared national goals.
According to him, northern leaders searched for a credible southern figure capable of working honestly with them to move Nigeria forward and eventually concluded that Obi stood out among the options available.
“I looked around together with our leadership in the north to say, okay, who do we think is capable? Who can come and work together with us honestly so that we can move this country? Along the line, we realised that Peter Obi is at the forefront of it. That’s why we all accepted to work together,” he said.
Kwankwaso, leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement and former presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in 2023, recently joined the NDC alongside Obi after leaving the crisis-ridden African Democratic Congress.
Obi, who contested the 2023 presidential election under the Labour Party platform, officially joined the NDC on May 3 alongside Kwankwaso, a move that has continued to reshape opposition politics ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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Kwankwaso said the alliance was not driven merely by regional sentiment but by political calculation and competence, stressing that Obi emerged as the preferred choice after extensive consultations among northern stakeholders.
At the NDC national convention in Abuja, the former Kano governor backed the party’s decision to zone its presidential ticket to the South, describing the arrangement as necessary for fairness, national healing and unity.
Addressing concerns about possible conflict between presidential and vice-presidential ambitions within the alliance, Kwankwaso argued that tensions between leaders and deputies often stem from greed rather than structural problems.
“The problem people are having, especially leaders, is that they are too greedy to the extent that they begin to have issues. There is so much to do. You don’t have to fight your deputy,” he stated.
He pointed to his own political career as evidence that political partnerships can succeed, recalling his working relationship with his former deputy governor during his eight years as governor of Kano State.
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Kwankwaso also traced the alliance model to Nigeria’s political history, referencing collaborations between former Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa and leaders of the NCNC, as well as the partnership between former President Shehu Shagari and late Vice President Alex Ekwueme.
He argued that Nigeria historically benefited from North-SouthEast political cooperation and said the current NDC arrangement reflects a return to that tradition.
The former governor further noted that the emergence of administrations led by leaders from the South-West after the annulment of the June 12 election altered the earlier balance of power-sharing arrangements in the country.
He maintained that Obi’s selection was based on political strength and national appeal rather than ethnic considerations alone.
Meanwhile, the alliance between Kwankwaso and Obi has already triggered fresh defections into the NDC, with lawmakers and political blocs reportedly gravitating toward the party as opposition realignments intensify ahead of 2027.