2027: ‘You can’t contest without structure’ – Sowunmi tells Peter Obi

The convener of The Alternative movement, Segun Sowunmi, has said Peter Obi cannot successfully contest the 2027 presidential election alone, arguing that the contest requires a strong political structure.

Sowunmi stated this during an interview on News Central on Tuesday while responding to a question on whether he considered Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, a threat ahead of the 2027 election.

He said political actors must recognise the importance of alliances and political structures when preparing for a presidential contest.

“As for Peter, there are seasons and there are times you have to know you are not going to singularly run into an election that requires structure, and you are not going to pretend that you’re not smelling the coffee,” Sowunmi said.

He argued that Obi should also consider the political position of governors in the South-East and the benefits their states were receiving from the Federal Government.

“If you have five governors in your zone, which is the South-East zone, and all of them are saying, from what we can see, from the resources we’re getting, from the construction that is going on, from the integration, let’s keep it there. Maybe you are good to think it that way,” he said.

Sowunmi also cited the Federal Government’s infrastructure projects in the South-East, particularly the work of the Minister of Works, as a factor that could influence political calculations in the region.

“If you see your Minister of Works doing exceedingly more than anybody since the Civil War to return infrastructure to the South-East, you may say, ‘Okay, why not?” he said.

The former PDP chieftain, however, said nobody should be prevented from contesting an election, even where such a candidate may not have sufficient political structure to win.

“But nobody has the right to force anybody not to go into the field to lose an election,” he said.

Sowunmi also advocated political cooperation among regions, saying the South should collaborate while the incumbent completes his term, after which political power could rotate.

“Now that it’s in the South, let the South collaborate together, and let the man that is on the seat finish his term, and let it swing to the North then it will swing back, and there will be opportunities for this negotiation and recalibration,” he said.

He added that democracy required contestants, winners and losers, urging candidates who lose elections to accept the outcomes.

“Democracy needs somebody to lose. That’s why you need people to also contest elections. So the winner will win, and the losers will lose,” Sowunmi said.

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