The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has explained why he cannot simply step down for his counterpart in the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Obi said the issue was no longer about individual candidates, but about political parties reaching an agreement on a possible alliance.

He made this known during an interview with Arise Television on Thursday while speaking on national issues.

Asked whether he would be willing to step down for Atiku, the former Anambra State governor said both men were already presidential candidates of different political parties.

According to Obi, any decision on who should emerge from a possible opposition alliance would have to be made by the parties involved.

He said, “Do you know where we are now? Where we are now is that I’m a candidate, my leader Atiku is a candidate of another party, so you are talking about two parties coming together; it’s no longer me or him as you are now talking about parties coming together.”

Obi explained that the situation was similar to two corporations coming together, where the decision could not simply be left to their chief executives.

He added that the issue was no longer about whether he personally wanted to contest or step down, saying the political process had moved beyond that stage.

Obi and Atiku previously contested the 2019 presidential election together under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), but lost to the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Muhammadu Buhari.

Ahead of the 2027 election, there have been reports of moves to reunite the two politicians as part of efforts to build a stronger opposition against the ruling APC.

However, Obi has repeatedly denied rejecting an offer to become Atiku’s running mate, insisting that no such offer was ever formally presented to him.

He said: “Who said so? Where? I wasn’t even in any party where that offer was on the table. I wasn’t even in a position where it was being offered and I refused.”

Obi also maintained that he had never stated that he would serve as vice president to anyone.

“My statement was unequivocal, and I am genuinely surprised by the misrepresentation of my words. For the avoidance of doubt, I never stated at any time that I would be vice president to anyone,” he said.

Peter Obi Explains Why He Cannot Step Down for Atiku in 2027

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