The presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party PRP, Mr Donald Duke, has predicted that President Bola Tinubu will win re-election in 2027 if major opposition candidates remain divided.

Duke said the failure of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress ADC and Mr Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress NDC to unite could repeat the pattern of the 2023 presidential election, when opposition votes were split among several candidates.

He made the remarks on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Wednesday while discussing the prospects of opposition candidates ahead of the 2027 election.

Duke said the opposition’s fragmentation was a major advantage to the ruling party, arguing that competing presidential bids by several major opposition figures could prevent them from converting their combined support into an electoral victory.

He compared the situation with the United States, where he said the dominance of two major political parties made it difficult for a fragmented opposition to dislodge the governing party.

According to him, the 2023 election demonstrated the consequences of opposition division, with Atiku, Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso contesting separately and splitting votes that could otherwise have formed a stronger challenge to the eventual winner.

Duke attributed part of the difficulty in achieving opposition unity to the personal ambitions and egos of leading politicians.

He warned that the major opposition contenders should not assume that their individual popularity or political structures would be sufficient to defeat the incumbent.

“These guys, the big ones you’re talking about, they’re preparing for inauguration. They think they’re going to win. I have news for them. They’re not going anywhere,” he said.

Asked whether his assessment meant Tinubu would win the 2027 presidential election if the opposition remained divided, Duke responded in the affirmative.

He said the opposition needed to set aside individual ambitions and work towards a common platform capable of mounting a credible challenge to the ruling All Progressives Congress.

Duke has previously advocated opposition unity, saying he was prepared to sacrifice his own presidential ambition if necessary to support a candidate jointly agreed upon by opposition parties.