2027 Race: Tinubu Unbeatable Without Coalition, Onovo Warns

Former presidential candidate, Chief Martin Onovo, has said that no single opposition party will be able to defeat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general election without forming a strong alliance.

Onovo, who ran on the platform of the now-defunct National Conscience Party (NCP) in 2015, made this assertion during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos.

According to him, the only viable path to unseating the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is through a united front of opposition parties.

Onovo welcomed the current coalition efforts being led by former PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, along with other opposition figures, calling it a positive and necessary step.

“I was the brain behind the largest coalition ever in the Fourth Republic, which birthed the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), and I can tell you that coalition is the only way because a united minority is stronger than a divided majority,” he said.

“The coalition will win the 2027 election with 99 per cent votes if it is not self-sabotaged. Take it to the bank, it will not fail. It will succeed and defeat the ruling party convincingly if they do it well.

“If the coalition is not self-sabotaged, it will be difficult for APC to return in 2027,” said Onovo, who also serves as Head of Policy Positions at the Movement for Fundamental Change (MFC).

Assessing the performance of the Tinubu administration so far, Onovo said not much progress had been made in the critical areas of security and the provision of basic needs to Nigerians.

He urged the President to focus the remaining years of his first term on tackling insecurity and improving living standards.

Onovo further advised Tinubu to strengthen his cabinet with capable technocrats rather than political loyalists, to ensure the effective delivery of campaign promises.

“The President needs to be clear about his objectives. He should be fully committed to improving the welfare and security of ordinary Nigerians in both cities and rural areas,” Onovo said.

“We need competent people in positions, not loyalists. Let us get the right people, right strategies and an ethical environment, while the President provides leadership and takes responsibility.

“We need the right commanders with the right strategies in security and the economy to end insecurity and suffering. We must not sacrifice performance for loyalty,” he stressed.

Onovo also urged Tinubu to intensify the fight against corruption and work to reduce the growing inequality in the country, which he said fuels insecurity and social tension.