As the clock ticks toward the next general election, the political pot in Nigeria is beginning to simmer. Whispers of a grand coalition are swirling through the air, like the Harmattan wind before a storm. The target? None other than President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the political juggernaut who rode the crest of the APC wave into Aso Rock in 2023.
But now, questions loom like dark clouds on the horizon. Can this patchwork of parties and power players truly shake the foundations of Tinubu’s incumbency? Or is this just another case of too many cooks spoiling the political broth?
Tinubu is no stranger to the game. A lion in Lagos and a strategist of no small repute, he knows how to play the long game and win. His web of loyalists stretches across the country, and though his tenure has not been without turmoil, marked by economic hardship and rising insecurity, his grip on power is still firm. To unseat such a seasoned operator would require not just fire, but focus.
And here lies the rub: unity in opposition is easier said than done. Nigerian coalitions are often built like sandcastles, grand but temporary. Everyone wants to lead, but no one wants to follow. The moment talks turn to candidacies and concessions, the centre can no longer hold. Politicians begin to peel off, chasing their own shadows, each convinced that they are the anointed one.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) is a key piece in this emerging puzzle. In recent years, the party has positioned itself as the refuge of reformers and the home of hopefuls. But now the question must be asked: Will the ADC’s leading lights put country before self, or will personal ambition scatter their ranks like dry leaves before a desert wind?
As the Yoruba say, “Agbajo owo la fi n soya.” It is with joined hands that we crack the palm kernel. If the ADC and its coalition partners truly want to challenge Tinubu’s throne, they must bury their pride and build a bridge. Politics is not a playground for egos; it is a battlefield where strategy, sacrifice, and synergy win the war.
But can ADC’s candidates step aside for a single standard-bearer? Will they let go of their lofty aspirations in the name of a common cause? That remains to be seen. Because when the time comes to choose between personal glory and collective gain, history has shown that many would rather be a small king in a broken kingdom than a loyal soldier in a winning army.
There is precedent, of course. In 2015, parties with very different roots merged and rallied behind Muhammadu Buhari, believing he was the best bet to beat Goodluck Jonathan. They swallowed their pride, clasped hands across ideological divides, and made history. That kind of discipline is rare but not impossible.
Still, time waits for no one. The coalition must make its move swiftly and surely, lest it be caught napping while the APC sharpens its swords and solidifies its base. The longer they dilly-dally, the deeper Tinubu digs his political trenches.
In the end, it comes down to this: will the coalition rise as a roaring river or dry up into divided streams? Will the ADC prove itself a party of purpose, or will it become a cautionary tale, another political player that flew too close to the sun, only to fall back to earth, undone by ego?
The drums of 2027 are already beating. And while talk is cheap, action is the true currency of change. If the coalition is to truly challenge the crown, they must remember: “When spiders unite, they can tie up a lion.” But if they scatter, then Tinubu may simply watch from his palace as they trip over their own tangled ambitions.
Anthony Ekpo Bassey is a Calabar-based Journalist and Public Affairs Analyst
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