Obasanjo brokered Obi-Kwankwaso alliance, says ex-aide

A former political adviser to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, Akin Osuntokun, has disclosed that the former Nigerian leader was instrumental in brokering the reported presidential alliance between Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso ahead of the 2027 general election.

Mr Osuntokun made the revelation during an interview on ARISE News on Sunday while dismissing claims that Mr Obasanjo was secretly supporting President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.

He described the allegations as baseless, insisting that Obasanjo’s political actions clearly showed where his support lay.

“If you can say that Obasanjo is supporting any ticket, it is the Peter Obi-Kwankwaso ticket. As a matter of fact, he is the principal sponsor of that ticket,” Mr Osuntokun said.

According to him, suggestions that the former president was working behind the scenes for Tinubu lacked logic.

“So how do you then suggest that he is secretly working for Tinubu? It does not make sense to me. I think that claim is absolute bunkum. The evidence is in the public domain.

“Obasanjo is playing a major role in supporting the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket. He was the one who brought the two men together,” he said.

Explaining Obasanjo’s role further, Osuntokun said the former president personally facilitated discussions between Obi and Kwankwaso, noting that both politicians enjoy a close relationship with him.

“Yes, of course. That’s what I said. He brokered the ticket between Obi and Kwankwaso. Both of them are quite close to him.

“It is a ticket that makes sense and has the potential to make a significant impact in the 2027 election. I can tell you for free that he was the one who brought the ticket together,” he added.

Mr Osuntokun also revealed that talks about a possible alliance between Obi and Kwankwaso predated the current political realignment, saying the two leaders could have teamed up before the 2023 presidential election.

“Kwankwaso could have teamed up with Obi four years ago. I remember him saying that if they had agreed then, they would probably have had an arrangement in which they would each spend one term in office, and Kwankwaso would now have been the beneficiary,” he said.

He argued that Obasanjo’s involvement in the alliance was already public knowledge and questioned why some political observers interpreted President Tinubu’s visit to the former president in 2023 as evidence of political support.

Mr Osuntokun further described the reported Obi-Kwankwaso joint ticket as a stronger and more viable electoral platform than the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential ticket.

“Obi and Kwankwaso is a much more realistic, more compelling ticket than the 2023 one,” he said.