Mamman Daura: G-100 Coalition is Feasible, Achievable Despite Short Timeframe

The vice presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Mamman Daura, has expressed optimism that the G-100 opposition coalition can still succeed in forging a formidable political alliance capable of challenging the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 general elections, despite the limited time available and unresolved legal hurdles surrounding the proposed coalition.
Daura, who was also the former director-general of the Department of State Services, (DSS), stated thus in an interview on Arise News.
“I hardily believe that the G-100, or whatever name we may go with it, an attempt at forming a coalition, is still something that is feasible. And there’s something that is also doable, and I think within the timeframe, despite the short period we have, it is also achievable.”
However, Daura noted that the proposed coalition still faced legal challenges that must be resolved, particularly provisions of the 2022 Electoral Act concerning the conduct of primaries and the possibility of parties retaining their identities while collectively producing a single candidate.
He said the situation differed from 2014, when opposition parties were able to merge more easily, stressing that although a merger was almost impossible under the current circumstances, ongoing high-level discussions could lead to a workable solution.
“However, like I said on the day of the summit, there are some issues that need to be threshed out. There are legal issues which have been entrenched in the 2022 Electoral Act, such as maybe a person not being able to run primaries in two parties. Two, there is also the issue of not being given the chance, I think by that same Electoral Act, of candidates either collapsing into or producing a candidate, while the other parties probably may continue to retain their identity.
“All these are legal issues that need to be threshed out. I am not sure which way it is going to go. But before the G-100, there is a top-level discussion going on in an attempt to see whether such a coalition is possible. I could recall maybe in 2014, when the country was faced with a similar situation, it was easier for the parties then to merge. But in our case, merger is almost an impossible thing to do. But again, if we look at the way things are going, probably we need to go to the table and look at the law again and be able to come up with a solution.”
Addressing concerns over the absence of his principal, Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, from the G-100 summit and other opposition gatherings, Daura dismissed suggestions that Makinde was not committed to the coalition or was merely positioning himself to eventually align with another political structure.
He explained that Makinde was out of the country when the events took place and had asked him to represent him, describing the decision as evidence of his principal’s concern and seriousness about the issues under discussion.
“I don’t seem to really agree with that postulation because it