The presidential candidates of the Accord Party, African Action Congress and Social Democratic Party have agreed to work together. Their goal is to form a common democratic force ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
According to Vanguard, Dr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim of Accord, Omoyele Sowore of AAC and Prince Adewole Adebayo of SDP, reached the agreement during a meeting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, over the weekend.
The meeting focused on Nigeria’s democracy, economy and security. The candidates expressed concern over what they described as the concentration of political power, weakening of democratic institutions and shrinking space for genuine political competition.
They warned that Nigeria risked moving from a competitive multi-party democracy towards what they described as “a coronation disguised as an election.”
The three leaders consequently resolved to align their political forces towards presenting Nigerians with a joint democratic alternative in 2027.
The proposed alliance is expected to mobilise workers, youths, women, professionals and entrepreneurs. It will also include civil society organisations and Nigerians across ethnic, religious, regional and political divides.
However, the candidates said the structure, modalities and presidential candidate of the proposed alliance would be determined later. They stressed that “the larger national interest must take precedence over individual political ambitions.”
The opposition leaders also demanded an immediate review of cases involving Nigerians detained or imprisoned over political expression, self-determination advocacy or the peaceful exercise of constitutionally protected rights.
They specifically called for the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, whose agitation has centred on the political rights and aspirations of Igbo people. They also called for the release of Bichia Maisango, whom they identified as an advocate of Hausa Zallah cultural rights.
The candidates also called for an end to what they described as the legal and political persecution of Sowore over his political activities.
“Democratic societies must accommodate dissent and peaceful disagreement,” they said.
The leaders further called on the international community, democratic governments, regional institutions and international democracy and human rights organisations to closely monitor Nigeria’s democratic trajectory.
They expressed concern over alleged attempts by individuals within the security architecture, electoral institutions, judiciary, legislature and executive to weaken opposition parties. They also pointed to manipulation of public institutions and frustration of genuine political competition.
While rejecting foreign interference in Nigeria’s sovereign affairs, they called for accountability where individuals abuse public office or institutional authority to undermine constitutional democracy.
They urged international partners to document credible evidence of democratic reversals and consider targeted sanctions. These could include visa restrictions and other lawful measures, against individuals found to have participated in such activities.
“Nigeria’s multi-party democracy must be preserved. No individual, political party, security agency, electoral official or institution is bigger than the Nigerian Constitution,” they declared.
The candidates also criticised the economic policies of the Bola Tinubu administration, particularly fuel subsidy removal and currency devaluation. They said these policies had contributed to rising living costs, declining purchasing power, unemployment and widespread economic hardship.
Also they called for urgent economic reforms, including substantial salary reviews towards a genuine living wage. They also urged stronger domestic production, investment promotion, job creation and measures to reduce inflation.
On insecurity, the candidates demanded a proactive national security strategy built around intelligence and technology. They also called for adequately equipped security forces, community cooperation, economic opportunities and effective prosecution.
They rejected what they described as appeasement, selective enforcement and political complicity that enabled violent groups to operate with impunity.
The three candidates pledged to defend Nigeria’s multi-party system and reject political monopolisation.
“A democracy without meaningful opposition is merely an electoral ritual,” they said. They affirmed their commitment to the constitutional right of Nigerians to form political parties, contest elections, disagree with government and offer alternative programmes without intimidation.
They also maintained that national unity must be founded on justice and inclusion.
“Unity cannot be built by suppressing differences; it must be built by guaranteeing justice within diversity,” they said.
According to the leaders, the proposed alliance is not merely an anti-incumbency arrangement but an attempt to develop a credible governing alternative. The plan is based on democratic accountability, economic justice, security, institutional reform, social inclusion and national development.
Meanwhile, the Movement for Democratic Renewal, MDR, for the South-South and South-East zones was launched on Saturday in Port Harcourt. At the launch, speakers called for unity of purpose to rescue the country.
The MDR is co-chaired by Olawepo-Hashim and the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero.
Leaders of the NLC gathered with industrial union leaders at the NLC Labour House in Port Harcourt. They met to address what they described as a fundamental national question: “How do we rescue Nigeria’s democracy and restore hope to millions of our people?”
The co-chairman of the movement, Olawepo-Hashim, said Nigeria had always been a great country. However, he noted that recent leaders had conspired to make it small.
According to him, “the prosperity in Nigeria continued until 1976 and Nigeria was a lender, not a borrowing nation.”
He added, “Today, industrialisation has gone out of Nigeria. But we must rescue our democracy. Any democracy that abandons the welfare of the workers is a mirage.”
Also speaking, Adebayo urged Nigerians to reject intimidation and political pressure.
“All workers must vote, because our problem is that our leaders today see themselves as colonial masters in black skin,” he said.
He stressed the importance of ideological unity, saying, “Unity is important. For people, we can only be united by ideology. You must raise cadres not for protest alone, but for government.”
Ajaero, who was represented at the event by Denja Yakub, said Nigerians could not depend on others to rescue the country.
“Nobody will fight for us. We need to fight for ourselves. There will never be industry for us if we don’t have worker-friendly people in power,” he said.
The NLC chairmen in Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Bayelsa, Edo, Enugu, Anambra, Imo, Abia and Ebonyi attended the event.
