Quick Reads:

• Kwankwaso says he and Obi signed two separate agreements guaranteeing Obi serves only one four-year term.
• Power returns to the North from 2031 under the arrangement, Kwankwaso says.
• He questions why Tinubu is repeating the Muslim-Muslim ticket after 2023 backlash.
• Atiku blames Nigeria’s hardship on Tinubu’s import-driven economic policies.
• Presidency’s Daniel Bwala accuses Obi of building a “political extremist” movement.

The Kwankwaso single-term pact with Peter Obi is now confirmed, with the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) vice-presidential candidate revealing that both men signed written agreements committing Obi to just one term in office if elected president in 2027

Speaking on Channels Television, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso said he has no doubt Obi will honour the arrangement, describing both men as “gentlemen” who chose to formalise their understanding on paper rather than leave it to trust alone. According to him, two separate documents exist — one between the NDC as a party, and another a personal agreement between himself and Obi.

Under the terms of the deal, Obi would govern from 2027 to 2031, after which the presidency would return to the North, with Kwankwaso positioning the arrangement as a deliberate move to preserve national balance. “The agreement is that after four years, we will continue to work together as a party, as friends and brothers, so that after our four-year term… power returns to the North,” he explained.

Kwankwaso said the single-term understanding influenced his decision to accept the number-two spot on the ticket despite having previously nursed presidential ambitions of his own. He insisted the NDC remains focused on 2027 for now, even as questions linger about his own future ambitions for 2031.

He also brushed aside worries that pending litigation over the party’s registration could derail its participation in the 2027 election, expressing confidence that no court would move to block the NDC from the ballot. Citing what he called encouraging feedback from opinion polls, Kwankwaso claimed the party enjoys strong support among young Nigerians.

Turning to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Kwankwaso queried President Bola Tinubu’s decision to retain a Muslim-Muslim ticket with Vice President Kashim Shettima for 2027, despite the controversy that trailed the same arrangement in 2023. He argued that fairness should guide ticket selection in a country roughly split between Muslims and Christians, recalling that he picked a Christian running mate in 2023 for that same reason. Asked if the issue would resurface in 2027, he said bluntly, “It has to be,” adding that Tinubu still has time before the substitution deadline to rebalance the ticket.

In a related development, Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) blamed Nigeria’s economic hardship on policies that favoured importation over local production, citing food inflation as high as 53.02 per cent in Kogi State and N3.53 trillion spent on raw material imports in six months.

Meanwhile, presidential aide Daniel Bwala accused Obi of building a “political extremist” movement and downplaying his political weight against Tinubu, further deepening the war of words ahead of the 2027 general election.