Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has dismissed the recent endorsement of President Bola Tinubu for a second term by governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC), calling it “immaterial.”
Speaking in an interview with the Nigerian Tribune on Sunday, May 25, Lawal said the move by the governors would have no impact on the 2027 presidential election.
On May 22, 22 APC governors threw their weight behind Tinubu as the party’s sole candidate for the next election.
But Lawal, who is part of a coalition of opposition leaders working to unseat the APC, said their endorsement holds no weight.
“Look, the way we are going, eventually, it is to voters at the polling booth that we will appeal, not any political party,” he said.
“Let the governors continue to defect, we don’t care. If we wake up one morning and heard that all the 36 states governors and the FCT are in APC, we don’t care.
“It is immaterial. They have only 37 votes; maybe we can add their families. Maybe you get 1000 votes. The voter is what we are targeting, and the voter is the victim of the system we are against.”
READ ALSO: Babachir Lawal Labels PDP ‘Incurable Virus’, Rules Out Coalition Role
Lawal insisted the coalition is focused and determined to challenge the ruling party. He added that despite public doubts, those involved are working deliberately behind the scenes to avoid leaks.
“I have been hooked up in this town for the past five months, participating in this. If I knew it wouldn’t succeed, I would be on my farm.
“I started farming since the season, but I stayed back. So, I must be an idiot if I leave my most important vocation to take coffee and snacks,” he said.
“Whoever says we aren’t serious doesn’t know who the people are, because they don’t know who they are, because we don’t take photographs. We don’t take minutes of meetings. We take time to make sure that information on strategies doesn’t leak.
“I am sure that is the reason for all the speculations. But I can tell you that the coalition is very serious; we are experienced and we know what we are doing. At the appropriate time, we will go public with what we are doing.”
Media reports suggest the coalition is considering the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as its vehicle to take on the APC in 2027.
However, Peter Obi, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, announced on Saturday that he will again run on his party’s platform, casting doubt on a possible alliance.