A former National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC, Salihu Lukman has called on former President Olusegun Obasanjo to rally some former leaders of the country to unite the opposition in forming a new political party to challenge President Bola Tinubu and APC ahead of the 2027 general election.

Lukman was reacting to an interview, where Obasanjo was quoted to have said that ‘a leader made by Satan is bound to fail, while God’s chosen one will thrive’.

The former APC stalwart said to produce godly leaders without satanic genotypes, Obasanjo and other past leaders like Generals Yakubu Gowon, Muhammadu Buhari, Ibrahim Babangida Abdulsalami Abubakar and former President Goodluck Jonathan have a huge moral obligation of engaging all opposition political leaders in the country to unite in order to produce a functional political party.

In the open letter to Obasanjo, Lukman said; “Everything must be done to put Nigeria on the roadmap of producing Godly leaders.

“Leaders such as Your Excellency, together with Gen. Gowon, Gen. Babangida, Gen. Abdulsalam, former President Jonathan and former President Buhari have the huge moral obligation of engaging all opposition political leaders in the country to unite in order to produce a functional political party that can serve as the harbinger for the emergence of Godly leaders in the country.

“It is not enough to lament about the fact of Satanic leadership in the country. So long as Your Excellency and other past leaders fail to assert their moral authority in ways that can lead to the emergence of Godly leaders, it is as good as working for the second term of President Tinubu and his team of failed leaders at all levels with all the problems they created.

“Of course, it simply means preference for Satanic leaders.”

According to him, so long as politics and governance are being diminished to the status of assemblage of cheerleaders, Satanic genotype will continue to be Nigeria’s leadership makeup.

Lukman added, “With such makeup, acts of impunity will continue to drive politics and even if we produce new parties with different names, such parties will at best be PDP and APC cloned.

“That is exactly what destroyed APC with all the potentials it had in 2015. How can we as a nation change that? Is there any prospect that within the shortest time possible the process of political re-engineering to produce a functional party that can be activated to serve as the harbinger for the emergence of leaders with Godly genotype?

“Your Excellency, this is the crux of this open letter. I believe that within the shortest time possible the process of producing a functional political party, which can be the harbinger for the emergence of leaders with Godly genotype is possible.

“In fact, it has already commenced. However, there are risk factors that if left on their own can pollute the process and take us back to square one and end up with another cloned PDP/APC.

“Once that is the case, we may end up with worse leaders based on the Satanic logic. The biggest risk factor is the failure to humble all opposition political leaders and get them to unite under one political platform.”

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Joe Igbokwe has claimed that the 2023 Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar cannot be president in 2027.

Igbokwe, who made the claims on Monday, on his Facebook page maintained that Atiku cannot fly in 2027, adding that he should wait till 2031.

He said: “Former Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Alhaji Atiku Abubakar is still struggling and dreaming of being president of Nigeria in 2027.

“It cannot fly, all things considered. He should wait till 2031. Even at that, age is not on his side.”

This is coming against the backdrop of the remark by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, George Akume that nobody from the North should contest against President Bola Tinubu in 2027.

Akume had said the likes of Atiku and other Northern leaders should allow Tinubu continue his second tenure in 2027.

But, Atiku through his media aide, Paul Ibe had dismissed Akume’s remark, noting that Tinubu has not done enough for Nigerians to reelect him in 2027.

Governor Sim Fubara of Rivers State on Sunday assured commissioners and permanent secretaries in his administration of a conducive working environment.

Fubara said his cabinet members can function optimally without tension or health conditions like high blood pressure.

He spoke at a special thanksgiving service organised in honour of Dr Tammy Wenike Danagogo, Rivers’ Secretary to the State Government SSG, in Abonnema Town, Akuku-Toru Local Government Area.

In a statement by Nelson Chukwudi, his Chief Press Secretary, Governor Fubara said a good administrator does not pressure his team into performance.

“I want to say that this administration that I am leading will stand by you. You don’t need to worry about the BP drugs anymore because I don’t intend to give anyone BP. There is no commissioner here that has BP. Before, you people used to have BP, but now, there is no BP. There is no permanent secretary who was always lying in the hospital and is still lying in the hospital now because there is no BP,” he said.

This comes amid the governor’s intense face-off with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike.

The tension between Fubara and Wike had affected some local government chairmen in the state.

The chairmen loyal to Wike had refused to leave office after the expiration of their tenure.

In April, the Rivers Assembly passed the Local Government Amendment Bill into law despite Fubara’s refusal to give his assent.

The amendment empowered the lawmakers to extend the tenure of elected chairpersons of LGAs and councillors where it is considered impracticable to hold elections before the expiration of their three-year term in office.

Despite declining to assent to the bill, the assembly vetoed his decision.

However, a court judgement nullified the amendment of the local government law.

After much back-and-forth, the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission conducted the local government election.

The Action Peoples Party won 22 out of 23 chairmanship positions, while the Action Alliance won one seat.