The director-general of the Peter Obi presidential campaign organisation, Doyin Okupe, has confirmed that the panel set up to discuss a possible merger between the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and the Labour Party has submitted its report.
Okupe, who is also the stand-in running mate to Obi, stated that the committee report indicated that the two parties agreed to work together.
However, Okupe told The Punch that both camps were yet to decide on who would become the presidential and vice presidential candidates if the merger sees the light of the day.
Okupe said, “A committee was set up before now and the committee has completed its work. There have been informal meetings and third party stakeholders interventions and we have had structured official meetings too.
“In all, we came to two agreements; one is that we are going to work together as political parties in order to achieve this change that we all desire. What we did not agree upon is who would be the president and who would be the vice-president. We didn’t agree on that. But we left it open.”
VANTAGE NEWS had reported that Obi and the NNPP presidential candidate, Rabiu Kwankwaso have been having series or meetings over plans to form a formidable third force ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Although it is no longer possible for political parties to merge in line with Section 81 (2) of the Electoral Act, both presidential candidates are working on a joint ticket.
The Section 81 (2) reads, “Political parties intending to merge shall each give to the commission nine months’ notice of their intention to do so before a general election.”
Recall that the 2023 presidential election scheduled to hold February 2023 is just eight months away.
Disclaimer
Comments expressed here do not reflect the opinions of Vantage News Nigeria or any employee thereof.
