Indications have emerged that the much-talked-about coalition of opposition politicians is headed for the rocks following the insistence of the leading lights of the group on contesting the 2027 presidential election on the presumptive platform.

However, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, said Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi and Nasir el-Rufai are not involved in the proposed party, the All Democratic Alliance (ADA).

He also ruled out the formation of a new political party ahead of the 2027 general elections, citing time constraints and the need for immediate political consolidation.

The Guardian learned that the coalition’s prime movers, including Atiku, Obi, Amaechi, and el-Rufai, are engaged in behind-the-scenes manoeuvres to ensure that the accord does not bury their presidential aspirations.

This is just as the consideration of Social Democratic Party (SDP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC) as the tentative platform of choice of the coalition has been put in abeyance by the decision of conveners of League of Northern Democrats, Sen Ibrahim Shekarau and Dr Umar Ardo, to apply for the registration of an entirely new political party.

It was also gathered that the issues of logo and colour format became a source of new worries within the fold of the new party advocates despite their resolution on adopting the name, ADA, instead of the League of National Democrats (LND).

Contrary to suggestions in the media that ADA has been adopted as the platform of choice of the coalition, Atiku said nothing of such has happened, even as he cautioned media practitioners to cross-check their facts before going to town with reports.

Atiku, who spoke through his Special Assistant on Media, Abdulrasheed Shehu, said ADA had neither been registered as a political party nor adopted by the coalition partners.

But, in an interview with The Guardian on development, Ardo, who contested the 2023 Adamawa gubernatorial poll on the platform of SDP, said his group marshalled convincing reasons why the registration of a fresh political party presents the best way forward for the coalition.

He disclosed that Atiku is among those trying to get the coalition to fuse into an existing political party, pointing out that the option was fraught with a lot of hurdles and landmines.

However, a source within the group told The Guardian that Ardo was doing all in his power to see that the coalition does not agree with Atiku, who prefers the fusion into an existing party to the registration of a new one.

Also, a founding member of All Progressives Congress (APC), Osita Okechukwu, said that the promoters of ADA could fall back on the Supreme Court ruling, which indicated that a prospective application for the registration of a new party could override the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) if the commission fails to recognise them after one month.

On his part, Lawal accused Ardo of falsely associating Atiku, Amaechi, el-Rufai and Obi with the ADA initiative without their consent.

The former SGF disclosed that the coalition comprised of ex-members of APC, former ministers from the Muhammadu Buhari administration and influential political figures.