Renowned Political Economist, Prof. Pat Utomi, says his proposed merger of opposition parties to wrestle power from the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027 is not for ‘machine politics’ but for genuine service to the people.
Utomi, the Convener of the National Consultative Front (NCFront) and the BIG TENT disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday that the proposed merger party was not a hurried coupling together of interests.
He was reacting to the comments by the Deputy National Organising Secretary of the APC, Nze Chidi Duru, on his merger plans.
Utomi had said that three presidential candidates in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP) and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), had agreed to form a formidable party that would sack the APC in 2027.
According to the professor who is also a leader in the Labour Party, after having a conversation with the three political heavyweights, he agreed to form a mega party that would take over the country’s leadership.
He said that Nigerians needed people who would make sacrifices for the development of the nation.
However, while Duru described Utomi’s plan in negative terms, the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Felix Morka, had also described him as a serial promoter of mega parties which never materialised.
Reacting, Utomi expressed confidence that through the merger initiative Nigeria would rise up again.
He said: “I read with interest the response by Nze Chidi Duru to speculations about what has been called a merger of opposition parties. That response itself is much evidence of progress.
“To clarify, what I have been speaking to is not the hurried coupling together of interests to create a platform for machine politics like the Daley machine in Chicago to obtain desired elections outcomes and foist state capture on a wearied people.
“What I have been speaking to is the founding of a real political party. This is something that has eluded this fourth republic.”
According to him, their efforts begin with ideation that will birth a world view of this party. Some call it ideology.
He added that his team would develop shared values around the approach to a people’s centered political party.
Utomi said that the next would be a structure for community based solutions to the personal troubles of people and flow of what the people want into the policy process.