Former spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, says that discussions about political coalitions in Nigeria are not unusual, and that politicians from the southern region have always played a major role in them.
While speaking on current political alliances and their timing, Baba-Ahmed pointed out that such coalitions are not new to Nigeria’s political landscape. According to him, these partnerships have always included key figures from the South, not just the North.
“There are southerners involved in this talk about coalitions, too. You know, Governor Rotimi Amaechi is there, and the former governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola, is there. There are a lot of people from the southern part of the country,” he noted.
He explained that southerners, just like northerners, want to play strong roles in the country’s political structure and are actively involved in current coalition talks. “They love the south too, they don’t want to be second to the north. They are there. It’s not every time that when a southerner is there, there have always been talks about coalitions,” he added.
Baba-Ahmed also recalled how alliances in the past brought major political changes. One example he gave was the formation of the coalition that led to the defeat of former President Goodluck Jonathan. He noted that a southern politician, who is now the president, played an important part in making that happen.
“We formed a coalition in 2011/2012 with a Southerner. His name is President Tinubu now. He gave us his bit of Nigeria, and we formed a coalition between the AD and the CPC, and we created the APC. It’s not a new thing. There have always been coalitions,” he recalled.
