Cracks are appearing in the African Democratic Congress over the presidential ambition of former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi.

According to Punch Newspaper, the problem stemmed from the insistence of Obi’s followers, aka Obidients, that he must be considered for the presidential ticket or they walk away.

It was gathered that some ADC leaders, especially northerners displeased with what they described as the overbearing attitude of Obi’s promoters, had begun to withdraw from him.

Obi, who is one of the leaders of the opposition coalition that transformed into ADC, joined the party on December 31, 2025, in Enugu.

Before his defection, Obi, the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, had promised to serve a single term if elected president.

He also entered into alliance discussions with the national leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, Rabiu Kwankwaso, who is being invited to the ADC to run on a joint ticket.

His followers, especially members of the Obidient Movement who joined the ADC from the Labour Party, have been insisting that he must be considered for the presidential ticket, arguing that the South deserves to rule the country for eight years before power returns to the North.

One of the staunch loyalists and drivers of Obi’s presidential ambition, Aisha Yesufu, vowed to work against the ADC if he runs as a vice-presidential candidate.

Yesufu, in a viral video a few days after Obi’s defection, said, “Let me go back to the Mr Peter Obi conversation where people are like, ‘you should run as vice president.’ Me, and I’m giving you people my word now… if Peter Obi is running with anyone as the vice president, as the running mate to that person, I will work against that ticket.

“In my little capacity, I will work against that ticket. Even if I don’t support any other person, I will work against that ticket.”

Similarly, a professor of political economy, Pat Utomi, said he would withdraw his support for Obi if the former Anambra governor accepted a vice-presidential candidacy.

Utomi, who spoke on January 1 during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme, said, “I can tell you that Peter Obi will contest for the presidency. The day he becomes somebody’s vice president, I walk away from his corner.”

It was gathered that Obi’s loyalists’ stance had started creating hostility between the camp of the former governor and that of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

In a post on his X handle on Tuesday, Atiku cautioned his followers and those of Obi against verbal attacks, saying they undermined opposition unity.

Beyond the verbal attacks, our correspondents learnt that many ADC leaders were apprehensive about what was playing out between Atiku and Obi’s camps.

Speaking with Sunday PUNCH on condition of anonymity, a leader of the ADC in Abuja said some of the party’s stakeholders had developed cold feet.

The source said, “If you ask me about division, I will tell you there is none. But are we worried about what is playing out between Atiku and Obi’s supporters? Yes. Some of us know that the way they are driving their interests may jeopardise the party’s chances in 2027. While some leaders are drawing parallel lines along the two camps, some of us are threading the path of caution.”

Confirming the party’s concern over the development, a former national chairman of the ADC, Ralph Nwozu, said party leaders were worried about the turn of events.

He said those causing division in the party were a small fraction of Obi’s supporters.

Nwozu maintained that the former governor was committed to the unity of the party.

He said, “All the leaders, all critical stakeholders in the party have advised their supporters to unite and build the party first. I was with Peter Obi yesterday (Friday), and he showed me the minutes of some of the Obidient meetings that he participated in, and he was very emphatic that this is about the country, not an individual.

“More than 60 per cent of some of the things you see being posted and said in the name of the Obidients, you will be surprised to see that the people behind them are not even members of the ADC. They are groups of people put together to continue to discredit ADC to ensure that the chance of opposition parties in Nigeria is dead.

“We can see some people who may be so carried away by emotion in Obi’s camp at this time, but they wouldn’t be up to five per cent. Yes, we are worried, and it is important because we are all interested in building the party. I can assure you that the outcome of the party’s primaries will not cause any division in the party.”

Similarly, the National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, Bolaji Abdullahi, said people with the mindset that a particular aspirant must be the party’s candidate were causing division.

He warned that such could undermine the party’s chances of victory in the 2027 elections.

Abdullahi, who spoke during the virtual ADC Coalition Hours on Saturday, said he had met with stakeholders to emphasise the importance of unity and collective commitment to secure victory in the upcoming elections.

He said, “Those supporting this divisiveness by supporters of any of the aspirants should stop what they are doing because they are clearly working to the advantage of the APC and President Bola Tinubu. Saying it is either this candidate or nothing is not helpful, because getting the ticket alone means nothing. What is important is winning the election, and we cannot carry this divisiveness and expect to win.

“We believe that all our aspirants are eminently qualified, and vilifying anybody or any region is not helpful and will make it more difficult. We are going to ignore people creating exceptionality, and we are going to focus on what we are doing because we want to win this election.

“Those shouting ‘Peter Obi or nothing’ are equally not helping him. They are preaching division, and they are not selling him. They are not providing the room for people to support him from other places. They should stop making other people take hard stances because everyone needs to be on board for us to win this election.”

‘Obi’s supporters hindering party’s progress’

In an interview with Sunday PUNCH, the Chairman of the ADC Chairmen’s Forum and Kogi State Chairman, Kingsley Ogga, stated that the attitude of Obi’s supporters was hindering the party’s progress.

He cautioned that such an attitude would also be detrimental to Obi’s aspirations.

Ogga said, “We have different branches that are coming to join the coalition, and everybody would like their candidate to emerge. Everybody wants things to come to their side. I think that is why they are behaving like that.

“No doubt about it, they are our supporters and they are on ground. But the attitude of ‘Obi or nothing’ is affecting our party. Let’s play politics. If we decide that Obi is the best candidate, we are going to vote for him in the primary. If it is Atiku, the same thing. If it is Amaechi, the same thing.

“We cannot just say because Obi is coming, everybody must say it must be him. In politics, there is no ‘must.’ It is God who gives power. Yes, we may say it must be, but if God says it is not to be, then it will not be. So, the attitude of people who insist that it must be one person will divide the party and affect the party’s chances. Because that is not the way it is supposed to be.

“If they are saying it must be Obi, people of Amaechi will say it must be Amaechi, and people from Atiku’s side will say it must be Atiku. If we cannot get this thing done, these people who say ‘must’ will pull out if it is not their way. His supporters are taking it too far. I think that is the problem we are still facing. If not, ADC by now should have hit the ground running.”

Similarly, the ADC National Treasurer, Ibrahim Mani, stated that ADC leaders were focused on building a strong party to rescue the country, rather than advancing the personal ambitions of an aspirant.

He said, “What we are trying to do is to build a very strong, distinctive opposition party that will serve as an alternative to the people of this country, by allowing them to elect new leaders and take them away from the same one-party state structure that is being pushed by the tendencies promoted by the ruling party today.

“So, the party is not necessarily built or structured around any individual or their ambition. We really want it to be a party that will be a rallying point for the people of this country to come together, solely for the interests of the party leaders who are there. So, we are not using any party to emphasise the ambition of any individual. That is not the objective.”