The 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, said a merger between the PDP and Labour Party is possible.

Atiku added that members of the party would decide his fate in the 2027 general elections.

In a recent interview, Atiku said it was too soon to determine if he would run for the presidency in the upcoming elections.

The former Vice President mentioned that his recent meeting with Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi might indicate a possible alliance leading up to the 2027 general elections.

Responding to questions about the meeting with Obi, Atiku said, “It’s just a normal friendly meeting that we often have, particularly among us in the opposition parties. Such meetings are healthy for Nigeria’s democracy and in the country’s interest.”

On whether this will bring about a merger, he said, “Yes, it’s very much possible. We can merge to achieve a common goal. So, it’s possible, and nothing can stop it if we wish to achieve that.”

The former Vice President, who denied that the choice of presidential candidate might frustrate the merger discussion, said, “That’s not true. That challenge will not arise. I can tell you that the choice of who will fly the flag of the party won’t be an issue.”

Atiku stated that if in 2027 the party determines that it is the South-East’s turn and selects Peter Obi, he will readily offer his support.

He stated ” I have said repeatedly and I even said it before the 2023 general elections that if PDP decides to zone the presidential ticket to the South or South-East specifically, I won’t contest it. As long as it’s the decision of the party, I will abide by it. But I contested the 2023 presidential ticket because it was thrown open to all members of the party.

“If the party decides that it’s the turn of the South-East and Peter Obi is chosen, I won’t hesitate to support him.”

On why he’s still in active politics, Atiku said, “Yes, we can’t keep quiet and watch things go wrong. People are suffering and we are committed to making Nigeria a better place.

“It means you are not tired of politics of Nigeria? Not at all. I am still in active politics in Nigeria, at least, as long as God permits.

“My age doesn’t stop the young ones from testing their fate. Everybody, irrespective of age, is allowed to aspire to be anybody in the society, politically or otherwise.”

Regarding his 2027 Presidential ambition, the former Vice President said “That would depend on the decision of my party. I can’t make any categorical statement on that. It’s the duty of the party to decide on the way to go in the next election.

“Until that time comes. Let’s just wait and see how it will turn out.

“It must not be interpreted like that. I must not be eyeing elections to have meetings with political friends and associates. Currently, we are practising democracy in this country which we fought for with our blood.”

Last week, Labour Party’s presidential candidate Peter Obi held a private meeting with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and several PDP leaders in Abuja.

Obi also met separately with former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido and former Senate President Bukola Saraki, sparking speculation about a possible coalition for the 2027 general elections.

Obi was a PDP member until 2022 when he left to pursue his presidential ambitions with the Labour Party.

He finished third behind Atiku in the February 23 presidential election, which was won by Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress.

Atiku blamed Obi’s departure from the PDP for his loss to Tinubu.

Kano State High Court No. 7 has re-scheduled the arraignment of the National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC, Abdullahi Ganduje to June 5.

Ganduje is standing trial alongside his wife Hafsat Umar, his son, Abdullahi Umar and five others

The defendants in the case included Abubaka Bawuro, Jibrilla Muhammad, Lamash Properties Limited, Safari textile Ltd., and lasage General Enterprise Ltd

Kano State High Court No. 5 presided over by Justice Usman Na’abba had earlier scheduled May 16 for ruling on the request substituted service on the defendants.

This was before the State Chief Judge, Justice Dije Aboki reassigned the case to High Court No 7 presided by Justice Amina Adamu.

The new charge sheet sighted contained 11 count charges against the initial eight count charges against Ganduje and his co-defendants.

They include allegations bordering on criminal conspiracy and criminal breach of trust.

Over 373,030 uncollected Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will be redistributed to the owners from May 27, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has revealed.

Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting on the forthcoming Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, the state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr Anugbum Onuoha stated that the PVC collection exercise would be done side-by-side with the CVR exercise, also scheduled for May 27.

Recall that the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, had announced to begin the CVR exercise in Edo and Ondo ahead of the governorship elections in the two states.

Onuoha says while the statistics of registered voters in Edo is 2,501,081, collected PVC is 2,128,288 and uncollected PVCs stand at 373,030.

He said both the CVR and the PVC collection would be a 10-day exercise, starting from May 27 to June 5, from 9.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m. daily, including weekends.

The REC explained that the exercise would be conducted in the 192 wards and the state headquarters of INEC in Edo.

He also disclosed that each registration centre would be managed by two officials drawn from the commission and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

“In addition to the registration of voters, the commission will also make available the uncollected PVCs for collection during CVR.

“Also note that no PVC will be collected by proxy. Registered voters should come in person to collect their cards.

“There will be no pre-registration option because of time constraints,” he said.

Onuoha, however, appealed for the support of the media, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), traditional rulers and religious leaders in encouraging voters to locate and pick up their PVCs.

According to him, the commission has published the final list of candidates for the Edo governorship election following the conclusion of primaries of the political parties.

The Deputy Director, Voter Registry, INEC Abuja, Mrs Doris Kande-Wyom, who took stakeholders through CVR processes, appealed to them to mobilise prospective registrants for the exercise.