Doyin Okupe: Labour Party discussing with NNPP, SDP to form coalition

Doyin Okupe, vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), says the party is discussing with some political parties on forming a coalition for the 2023 elections.

Okupe spoke on Friday during an interview with Channels Television.

The former presidential spokesperson had announced on Friday that he would be “standing in” as running mate to Peter Obi, LP presidential candidate.

He also said the party is working towards creating the “largest political coalition” in the country to defeat the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“Our idea and reasoning is to bring together in this country, for the first time, the largest political coalition possible because we are facing two political giants — APC and PDP. We are serious about upstaging them and we will,” he said.

“But to do that, we cannot do it alone. We need to be able to put together this coalition, and this so-called third force is now alive and it is important for us to ensure that all the stakeholders are carried along from the beginning to the end.

“We do not want a situation where an action is taken and then people feel that ‘you have cooked this food and finished it, so what is the need for us’. Because of this, I, Dr. Doyin Okupe, am standing in as the vice-presidential candidate for the Labour Party.

“There is no secret here. We are talking to so many groups, youth groups, and political formations. We are talking to PRP, NNPP, and SDP. We are talking to every possible major political outfit outside APC and PDP. We are not hiding anything.

“The choosing of the vice-presidential candidate is an electoral process. And it does not stop until the process and the schedule ends. INEC allows you to present a candidate and if you want to substitute, you may substitute if necessary, and if it’s not necessary, you may as well continue.

“So, the present situation is that we believe that this Labour Party government that is coming is essentially going to be about young Nigerians. Those of us who have been part of our sordid past, we must be prepared to pay the sacrifice, even personal sacrifice, of allowing a situation where you can lift up our youths to positions of power and authority.

“I am willing to put down my back so that young people can stand on my back and come to the top. No sacrifice is too big to achieve this. We will continue to work and pursue this project until we are able to hand over Nigeria to the rightful owners of the country – the workers and youths of this country.”