Peter And Atuku – Who Will Surrender In A Case Of Merger?
A big question deserves a well-thought out answer. A lot of facts must be placed accordingly for us to arrive at a factual possibility.
Peter Obi has openly confirmed he would support a merger, while wisely indicating it would not be for a political maneuver, but for the betterment of the country.
One thing is clear, no aspiring politician sacrifices his political aspiration for anything, so, in a situation Peter Obi tells his audience that his decision will be centered on the aspiration of others is a political statement, aimed to smoother hurdles.
Peter Obi’s decision will strictly be on carefully calculated political game, aimed to elevate his status or give him his political laurel. Decisions will be made based on what is possible to ensure victory in the next election and beyond.
It’s important to know that the plans or policies of a politician remain an illusion until he ascends to a political office to act his policies or plans. Hence, the driving force of Peter Obi must or will be centered on ascending to power by any means possible.
If a merger is brought on his table and after internal deliberations, and it appears to be convincing, he would definitely take it.
The question will be, who surrenders or submits. For a merger to be possible, one must accept to be the vice president, for them to excel.
Before we speak about the statuses of the two leaders, it is crucial to first make clear their respective red and green lines. Atiku has said that he would support Peter Obi if Peoples Democratic Party zones the ticket exclusively to Southeast, where Peter is from.
He said support and not succumb. In this context, Atiku meant he would step aside and not go under Peter Obi as his vice presidential candidate. Atiku could support financially and endorse him as well. Atiku has massive followings and with his party structure under his control, Peter Obi will upset the status quo.
Atiku never discussed merger, he is a big fish and cannot be second best. Atiku is Peter Obi’s political godfather, and rightly.
The onus now falls back on Peoples Democratic Party, will they zone the presidency to Southeast?
Atiku remains the main party leader in PDP – he owns the party. No decision can effectively impact without his approval.
In the build up to the last election, PDP agreed to zone the party ticket exclusively to Southeast, but that agreement was torn apart the moment Atiku stepped in.
Therfore, for PDP to zone presidential ticket to Southeast, Atiku must have retired from politics or indicated he doesn’t want to contest anymore.
As long as Atiku wants to contest in a presidential election, the ticket will continue to be open and Peter Obi cannot take it away from him. So, there is truly no support for Peter Obi, neither a surrender.
On the side of Peter Obi, he has indicated he would merge his Labour Party with PDP, and in such case, he would be the one to submit to become the vice presidential candidate. Atiku is too big and his pedigree has proven that he can’t second anyone.
Peter Obi appears to be ready to settle for the vice presidential slot with Atiku.
