Former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain and publisher of Ovation magazine, Dele Momodu, has called on opposition parties to close ranks and adopt what he termed the “ethnic and religious cards” if they hope to stand a chance against President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.
Momodu made the remarks on Wednesday via his post on 𝕏 (formerly Twitter), where he reacted to the latest wave of defections by PDP governors, including Enugu State’s Peter Mbah and Bayelsa’s Douye Diri, to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
According to him, the APC’s growing influence across both the executive and legislative arms has pushed Nigeria closer to a one-party system.
“Nigeria has comfortably, voluntarily, and predictably cruised senselessly into a one-party state,” Momodu wrote. “Both the executive and the legislative arms finally crossed the Rubicon yesterday under the grip of the ruling party, APC.”
Despite this, the veteran journalist insisted that the opposition still has a small window of opportunity, but only if it builds a strong alliance.
“The opposition has only one option left to be competitive since Tinubu has already locked down the South. Opposition must work speedily to lock down the North. With commonsense, this is feasible, even if difficult,” he said.
Momodu, however, ruled out the chances of any southern candidate—such as former President Goodluck Jonathan or former Governor Peter Obi—defeating Tinubu if they run independently.
“I do not see any Southern candidate giving Tinubu any tough challenge. If they run looking more like independent candidates, they will fail spectacularly,” he stated.
The media mogul urged the opposition to form a coalition similar to the 2015 alliance that brought the APC to power, proposing a Northern Muslim presidential candidate with a Southern Christian running mate as the most viable ticket.
“If the opposition is serious and determined to do whatever it takes, it must first unite and decide to play the ethnic and religious cards too,” Momodu advised. “Opposition must pick a formidable Northern Muslim candidate with a very popular Southern Christian running mate against Tinubu’s likely Muslim-Muslim ticket.”
He concluded that while the political landscape appears tilted in Tinubu’s favour, all hope is not lost.
“The game is not over,” he added. “But it requires candidates of absolute necessity.”