The Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) presidential candidate, Donald Duke, said he is unsure whether Omoyele Sowore, the African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, is seeking elective office in the 2027 general election, describing the activist as a “voice of conscience.”
Duke spoke in an interview with the Naija Unfiltered Podcast while discussing efforts by opposition figures and groups, including G100, to unite against the President Bola Tinubu-led administration ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
According to him, Sowore plays a different role in the political space by speaking on issues that some politicians may avoid because of the demands of political civility.
“Let me talk about Sowore. I like him. I’m not sure Sowore is running for office, with due respect to him, but I see him as a voice of conscience,” Duke said.
“He says things that some of us, maybe due to civility, won’t say, but they’re real.”
Duke, however, said the broader opposition should continue efforts to build a united platform, but cautioned that defeating Tinubu alone should not be the objective of such an alliance.
He noted that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Anambra State governor, Peter Obi, had stayed away from some of the meetings aimed at forging opposition unity.
“It’s unfortunate that the two other candidates, Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Governor Peter Obi, stayed away,” he said.
Duke said discussions were still ongoing among opposition stakeholders on how to develop a framework for cooperation, expressing hope that the process would eventually succeed.
He argued that the opposition needed to first agree on what it intended to achieve for the country before settling on a candidate.
“If it’s coming together just for the sake of defeating the incumbent, then I think it’s a waste of time. We must have a central objective about where we’d like to take Nigeria to, and who is best suited to do that,” he said.
The PRP candidate also advocated a long-term merger of opposition parties, arguing that a fragmented opposition would struggle to compete effectively under Nigeria’s presidential system.
“I think the long-term objective is to merge the opposition. You can’t have a fractured opposition in a presidential system,” Duke said.
He also called for an end to what he described as the “winner-takes-all syndrome,” arguing that political cooperation should allow broader participation in government.
“I hear we have about 18 presidential candidates. They should all come together. There’s enough in Nigeria for all of us, and this winner-takes-all syndrome must end. That’s what we’re hoping for,” he said.
Duke said the meetings among opposition stakeholders were continuing, adding that the outcome of the efforts would become clearer as discussions progressed.
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