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2027: Atiku, Obi Team-Up Will Defeat Tinubu, Predicts GRV

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2027: Atiku, Obi Team-Up Will Defeat Tinubu, Predicts GRV

Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the 2023 Labour Party governorship candidate in Lagos State, has said that a political alliance between former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi will remove President Bola Tinubu’s government in 2027.

Speaking during an appearance on Channels Television’s Lunchtime Politics on Tuesday, Rhodes-Vivour emphasised the need for opposition unity, warning that the divided votes that shaped the 2023 presidential election must not repeat.

“The only way that we can move this country forward in terms of the opposition is to come together. We cannot afford to divide our votes again. Add Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s votes to His Excellency Peter Obi’s votes, they’ll completely take out the current sitting President,” he said.

In the 2023 presidential election, Tinubu, running on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), polled 8,794,726 votes to emerge victorious. Atiku, representing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), scored 6,984,520 votes, while Obi, the Labour Party’s candidate, secured 6,101,533 votes. Combined, Atiku and Obi amassed over 13 million votes—significantly more than Tinubu’s winning total.

Critics of the APC have long argued that the division between Atiku and Obi cost the opposition victory in 2023. Both leaders had previously worked together in the 2019 presidential election, when Obi served as Atiku’s running mate under the PDP banner.

Rhodes-Vivour disclosed that current efforts are underway to build a coalition of opposition forces ahead of 2027, with Atiku playing a central role in the discussions.

“The conversation now—we are working to put a coalition together. We are going to hear announcements by tomorrow or next, tomorrow, and everybody is coming together. That’s our main focus. At that point we can then authoritatively say this is the party that we are going to run on,” he said.

Politicsnigeria.com

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2027 Election: Prophet Releases Message On Tinubu’s Chances Amid Sack Plots By Atiku, Obi, Others [VIDEO]

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Ahead of the 2027 elections, Prophet Godwin Ikuru, the founder of the Jehovah Eye Salvation Ministry, has said President Bola Tinubu will get a second mandate.

Speaking recently in a video shared on his known Facebook page, seen by Legit.ng, Prophet Ikuru described Tinubu as the most formidable candidate for the 2027 general elections.

“Some people say Asiwaju (referring to Tinubu) will not win 2027. Save your lie; he is still the man. Asiwaju still remains the man.”

former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, ex-Anambra governor Peter Obi, and several opposition leaders are preparing for the biggest battle of their political careers: to democratically unseat a man often described as a political god, Tinubu, whose first four-year presidential term concludes in 2027.

Tinubu, Atiku’s former associate, whom he nearly ran with on a joint ticket in the 2007 presidential election, according to WikiLeaks memos, will be on the ballot representing the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Both men were founding fathers of the party. Despite facing significant security challenges during his tenure, Tinubu is still widely regarded as the man to beat.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), considered the main opposition, has seen its influence wane in parts of the south and north, as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) grows in prominence with new high-profile members.

Within the PDP, internal divisions persist, with factions led by Kabiru Turaki (SAN) and Nyesom Wike, minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), vying for legitimacy.

As Nigerians look forward to the 2027 elections, both the ADC and PDP have vowed to unseat President Tinubu.

The video can be watched here Facebook video

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PDP Crisis Deepens As Another Governor Hints At APC Defection

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Adamawa Governor Ahmadu Fintiri has hinted at defection from PDP to APC based on constituents’ wishes Political reactions showed mixed sentiments regarding Fintiri’s potential party switch Fintiri is one of the last PDP governors amidst increasing defections to the APC

Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa has spoken on the possibility of him dumping the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the possible ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

The governor, while addressing questions on his defection plan, said he would not hesitate to leave the party if his people asked him to leave the PDP. He added that he is still consulting with his people.

Governor Fintiri said:

“There are a lot of rumours about whether Fintiri will defect to the (APC) or not. If that is the wish of my people to defect, politics is all about people. I’m still consulting, and if my people say I should move, I will move.” 

Fintiri is one of the four governors who were left in the PDP, following the defection of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, Umo Eno, Agbu Kefas, Siminalayi Fubara, and Peter Mbah of Delta, Akwa Ibom, Taraba, Rivers and Enugu states, respectively. Currently, the PDP has Governor Fintiri, Dauda Lawal of Zamfara, Bala Mohammed of Bauchi and Seyi Makinde of Oyo State.

However, Governor Fintiri’s comment has started generating responses from Nigerians. Below are some of their reactions:

King Dave said that the governor is on his way to the APC:

“In Nigeria, when a governor says, “I am consulting my people,” it means “I am checking the size of the federal allocation.” Fintiri is playing a high-stakes game of political chicken with the PDP. He already betrayed Atiku, and he is on his way to the APC.”

Davinci commented on the political terrain in the state:

Politics is really an interesting game. A PDP preparing to welcome an APC president. All billboards of PDP along the airport road to the Govt house have been pulled down, while APC billboard is mounted everywhere under the instruction of the Governor”.

Cassy Okosisi said:

“You all should just move, and let’s have only electronic transmission of result real time, without manual collation. Watch the fall of Apc.”

Ababakar Sadiq said the governor has recorded success under the PDP:

“Sir, you belong to the APC, Allah ya kiyaye hanya. We are glad all you’ve achieved so far is under the PDP… Mun gode.” 

Toba Truth said the governor should just dump the PDP for the APC:

“Which people? Your family people, or the people that voted for you, or the APC caucus, just move to the APC as simply as ABC.”

You can watch the governor’s video on X here:

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‘How Murtala Muhammed Was Assassinated, Other Untold Stories’

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Fifty years after the assassination of former Head of State, Murtala Muhammed, fresh memories have resurfaced through the emotional recollection of his former orderly, Michael Otuwe (retd.), who witnessed the failed 1976 coup firsthand.

In a rare interview conducted a decade ago and now revisited to mark the anniversary, the retired soldier recounts how the charismatic leader almost escaped his attackers, his experiences during the civil war, and the personal sacrifices that defined years of close service to one of Nigeria’s most revered military figures.

Recalling his journey into the military during the interview with Daily Trust, Otuwe narrated, “I am an Igala man from Olamoboro Local Government of Kogi State. I attended Ankpa Primary School and Ankpa Model Secondary School before I joined the profession I cherished most, the army.”

According to him, he enlisted in the Nigerian Army on September 11, 1967, at the Ikeja Military Cantonment in Lagos, where he underwent six months of training on the eve of the Nigerian Civil War.

“After the training I was posted to the Nigerian Army Signal Corps and incidentally, Murtala Ramat Mohammed was a Colonel then and the Inspector of Signals,” he added.

Otuwe said Muhammed personally chose him because of his discipline and neatness.

“He told me that he noticed how immaculate I was in my army dress when we do master parade. He picked me to be his orderly when I was a Lance Corporal,” he said.

He explained that he served closely with Muhammed through various postings, including during the civil war when the late General became the first General Officer Commanding of the Second Division of the Nigerian Army.

“I worked with him till he was killed, and that was 11 years,” Otuwe said, noting that during the period the General had three children, Aisha, Zakari and Fatima.

Otuwe described Muhammed as a strategic and disciplined military commander.

“He was an organiser of men and their welfare. He was smart and hardworking and thought of Nigeria first before anything,” he said.

He recalled an incident when Biafran soldiers encircled them.

“He did a wonderful tactical manoeuvre and retreated that baffled even we that were with him. When many wanted to surrender, he made a quest to fight and to win for Nigeria to continue as a united country.”

Surviving Ambushes

The retired soldier recounted several ambushes encountered during the war. He said, “We encountered many ambushes and attacks but one of the most memorable was when we were encircled at Ukpo Junction in Abbagana. Murtala did a tactical manoeuvre and withdrew and prepared for a defensive attack that led to the capture of many towns and cities.”

Otuwe added that after some operations, troops moved through Asaba and later to Idah in present-day Kogi State to prepare for further offensives.

“In 1968, there was a reshuffle that took General Murtala back to Lagos as Minister of Communications and Inspector of Signals. That meant he was doing two jobs at the same time,” he said.

Speaking on how his job affected his family, Otuwe said his wife had become accustomed to military life.

“She was married to a soldier, and she had become part of the system. When she saw us at home, it meant we were off duty,” he said.

He added that his children rarely saw him due to his demanding schedule.

“Most of my children almost forgot me as I left home at dawn and came back late in the night,” Otuwe noted.

Secret Visits, Price Monitoring

Otuwe also recounted how Muhammad disguised himself to monitor market prices in Lagos.

“I and his ADC, Lieutenant Akintunde Akinterinwa, once followed him to survey prices and the rising cost of goods,” he said.

“He wore a tracksuit, a face cap and dark goggles and rode a horse to a filling station, disembarked, tied it and entered Sangross (Lagos Island), then Ajegunle and later Agege markets. The ADC pretended that we were not together, and the ADC was writing the prices, and I was pretending to be a window shopper. A market woman told him to give other buyers a chance as people were more disciplined then, as everybody queued for their turn. After two weeks goods and meat came in ships. People tagged the meat as ‘Murtala Meat’”.

The Day Of Assassination

When asked about what happened the day Murtala was assassinated, Otuwe narrated, “He was assassinated on July 29, 1976 (Starts shedding tears). He ruled for six months from July 29, 1975, to February 13, 1976. He was a very good man, as he did not allow the goods (personal effects) of General Gowon to be thrown out, but to be removed gently, and for the house to be renovated before he relocated from Dodan Barracks. That was why he was shuttling from Ikoyi without pilot cars, motorbike outriders, armed military and security bodyguards among others. He only rode in the official Mercedes-Benz car with two flags, the national flag on the left and the armed forces flag on the right. On that fateful day, we passed through the Federal Secretariat in Ikoyi, which was undergoing renovation and covered with zinc.

“When we reached Alagbgon Junction, the traffic man did not notice the flags, he would have allowed the traffic in our direction to continue moving, but he stopped the five or six cars in front of us then I saw some people in agbada (Babanriga) and when they lifted them up they brought out AK-47 rifles and fired at us. Already a masked man had got the driver, Sergeant Adamu Michika, in the head and he feel on the arm-rest where the suit case containing the General’s mufti was. I took cover and fell on the driver.

“The General and the ADC also took cover. When the assassins left and were heading to the National Broadcasting Corporation, Radio House, to announce the takeover, one of the Majors turned and saw that when the ADC opened the door to help the General, the Major shouted and notified his colleagues that they were alive. This made them turn and rush back and empty their bullets at us. I was the only survivor as I was shot in the arm and the hip.

“The troops loyal to General Murtala came after the soldiers and they took us to the mortuary. I recovered from coma when the breeze from the air conditioner and the pain woke me up. A mortuary attendant noticed that I raised my hand, and he alerted a doctor, who said I was alive, and they took me to Dodan Barracks and then to a hospital on Awolowo Road, Ikoyi.”

About his recovery from the incident, Otuwe said, “I spent six months recovering and resumed work with the Nigerian Army Signal Corps. Where I worked with Generals Adenaju, Raji Rasaki and lastly Tanko Ayuba.

Asked whether he has ever received any honour, the retired soldier responded, “No, not at all.”

Sharing his residence at the time of the interview, Otuwe revealed, “I am now staying in a rented two-bedroom house in Maraba in Nasarawa State. The street has no name not to talk of house number. But I am working in the office of Riskua Murtala Muhammed in Maitama.”

Otuwe recalled that he retired from service on December 31, 1999, as a Master Warrant Officer.

On whether he ever regretted serving in the Nigerian Army, Otuwe said: “No, no, no, not at all.”

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