Suswam, who featured on ‘Politics Today’, a Channels Television programme, Nigerians are fed up with the economic direction of the President Bola Tinubu administration.

“This is not the first time you are going to have a scenario such as this,” the ex-Benue governor said.

“Nigerians, based on the economic policies of this administration, are very dissatisfied.

“There is no Nigerian that is not affected by the economic policies of this administration and so I believe that the coalition will be the party to beat, and so if I am in the ruling party I should be worried about it.”

Speaking during a visit to Nasarawa on Wednesday, Tinubu the opposition alliance, referring to its promoters as “internally displaced politicians”.

The president also warned that he would not stay idle while some political actors work to undermine his administration.

Responding to the president’s remark, Suswam said he had seen that sort of confidence before — notably in 2015.

“We were doing the same thing when we were in government, we were dismissing APC then completely,” he said.

“People didn’t just give them any chance at all but they won that election.”

He said the seriousness of the coalition would depend on the calibre of people backing it.

According to him, many within the APC are the coalition, and that in itself should raise concerns within the presidency.

In 2013, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), and New Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP) merged to form the APC.

The APC alliance, with Muhammadu Buhari as the presidential flagbearer, defeated the PDP in the 2015 presidential election, unseating Goodluck Jonathan.

‘I CAN LEAVE PDP’

Asked if he was part of the coalition talks, Suswam said he was disillusioned with the PDP and would not rule out hopping on another political vehicle.

“I am dissatisfied with the PDP; If the coalition presents a good platform for me, of course I will join them,” he said.

“There is a possibility that I will, with what is going on; there are so many alternatives. There is LP, ADA, NNPP, Kwankwaso is a colleague and a friend. So, there are lots of alternatives. APC can be alternative, after all, it is the ruling party, so I’m not ruling that out.”

The PDP has been battling internal divisions for over two years. Suswam expressed little optimism that the party would mend the cracks before the 2027 polls.

“We are in June and we have two months until 2026; around March and April 2026, full political activities would have started,” he said.

“The party that is not together and does not look like it will put itself together cannot be part of that (2027) elections.

“I don’t see the PDP coming out of this quagmire anytime soon, and I want to contest the election, so I wouldn’t want to waste my time waiting and imagining.”

Suswam said resolving the party’s crisis would require an honest conversation with aggrieved persons.

“If I were asked to resolve it, I would first sit down with the aggrieved members of the party, seek to know what the issues are, and address them,” he said.