Peter Obi has declared support for Labour Party (LP) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to merge ahead of the 2027 presidential election, saying he’s very desperate for Nigeria to be better.

The Labour Party’s candidate in the 2023 poll, said this during an interview with NoireTV-GlobalBlackTV broadcast Saturday on YouTube, weeks after former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar hosted Obi.

“If the merger is to be able to govern Nigeria properly, unlock all those things that will make Nigeria a better place, I’m for it,” the former Anambra governor said. “If it’s just a merger for election or state capture, I’m not for it or part of it. I don’t want to be part of anything like that.”
Obi reiterated that he was not desperate to become the president, nor was he seeking to be president for personal ambition, but rather for the well-being of Nigerians.

“I’m not desperate to be president. I’m desperate to see Nigeria work, especially for the poor people, because we have a lot of potential,” added the former PDP presidential running mate.

On the issue of Atiku supporting his candidacy in the case of a merger, the former LP presidential candidate said: “I commend him and I’m grateful for his statements, especially where he said he will support me if it (the presidential ticket) goes to the South East.

“If the merger is to be able to govern Nigeria properly, unlock all those things that will make Nigeria a better place, I’m for it.”

Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress (APC) had dismissed the potential merger talk between Atiku and Peter Obi.

It described Atiku and Obi as desperate politicians who could not be trusted with power.

The ruling party also said it had no doubt the meeting between the two opposition candidates would amount to nothing, saying it was being fuelled by a mutual desperation to ensure President Bola Tinubu did not return to office in 2027.

The National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Felix Morka, made this known in a statement issued in Abuja, titled “Atiku, Obi united by mutual desperation.”

Morka acknowledged that the meeting of the political allies had further heightened the speculations of a possible alliance between both men and their political parties ahead of 2027.

The APC spokesman, however, maintained that it was unclear whether Obi would be willing to make a comeback to Atiku’s PDP or whether the latter would agree to dump his party to seek “rehabilitation” in Obi’s Labour Party.

He said, “The news of Peter Obi’s return to the PDP would be hardly surprising. His reputation as a political wayfarer is only dwarfed by Atiku’s track record as a veteran political wanderer.

“News of Atiku joining the Labour Party will shock no one as he will be living up to his well-established reputation as the country’s most itinerant politician.

“For now, Utomi’s mega party remains a figment with no offering of tangible accommodation for both men.

“Atiku and Obi are united by their mutual desperation to be President of Nigeria and the ignoble disdain for President Bola Tinubu’s focused and extraordinary commitment to the transformation of our nation.

“Their restless drift in search of convenient party platforms to execute their presidential run only belies the self-indulgent and opportunistic essence of their aspirations.”

He said by their character, Nigerians could not trust both Atiku and Obi with power, as they would not be able to handle national challenges.

“Men without the staying power to build or fix their own parties, who flee at the slightest flicker of internal crisis, cannot possibly be trusted by Nigerians to tackle serious and complex national, political and economic challenges that confront our nation.

“We urge Nigerians to stand fast in their invaluable support of our great party and President Bola Tinubu’s determined commitment to deliver a stronger, secure and more prosperous country for us all,” the party spokesman said.