by Mohammed Bello Doka
19 May, 2026
In the chaotic theatre of Nigerian politics, no script is ever truly retired. Just when the nation thought it had moved past the electoral brinkmanship of 2023, a new and desperate act is unfolding. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, a former governor and political heavyweight, is now walking the dusty trails of the Muslim North, hawking a product the region has already learned to deeply distrust. That product is Peter Obi. Kwankwaso has become the weary salesman for a brand that once declared the 2023 election a religious war, and the tragic irony is that he seems confused about why the Northern audience is slamming the door in his face.
The core of this political comedy of errors lies in a haunting audio recording from the last elections. In that leaked conversation with Bishop David Oyedepo, Peter Obi did not mince words. He was captured on record declaring the 2023 elections as a religious war, stating bluntly, “Daddy, this is a religious war” as he sought support to break into the South West and Kwara State. While Obi later attempted a masterclass in gaslighting by claiming the audio was "fake" and that he never described the election as such, the damage was irreversible. The cat was out of the bag. To the Northern Muslim electorate, the message was clear: Peter Obi saw their votes not as a national mandate but as a battlefield for religious conquest.
Now, just three years later, Kwankwaso has joined this religious war. By agreeing to market Obi to the North, he has effectively endorsed that original divisive premise. The natural question for Kwankwaso is this: Have you, Senator, officially enlisted in the religious war Obi declared in 2023? By standing shoulder to shoulder with a man who framed a national election as a crusade, you are no longer a neutral salesman; you are a general in that army. Furthermore, we must ask Peter Obi directly: Has he withdrawn the religious war declaration, or has he simply rebranded it to suit a new alliance? His recent silence on the matter suggests that the strategy hasn’t changed; only the packaging has.
The reception in the North has been as predictable as it has been brutal. Kwankwaso and his supporters have been complaining loudly that they are being insulted throughout the region. The truth, however, is far simpler: the North is not insulting Kwankwaso; they are rejecting the burden of a bad product. Professor Murtala Muhammad, a political analyst, notes that while Obi had some support among urban youths, his northern vote share was merely 14%, compared to over 40% in the South. The core North-West remains a fortress of religious and regional loyalty. Adding insult to injury, a prominent northern cleric, Sheikh Barrister Ishaq Adam Kano, has openly rejected the alliance, warning Muslims against supporting a non-Muslim candidate whom he described as more dangerous to their interests. Kwankwaso must figure out that his message is not being received. The insults he hears are not insults; they are the market forces of politics rejecting a defective product. The North remembers the religious war, and they refuse to buy the peace.
Kwankwaso’s desperation is further highlighted by the implosion of his own political fortress. The New Nigeria Peoples Party has dismissed his recent exit as a mere formality, stating that he “ceased to be a member of the NNPP” following his expulsion in 2023. Even his political godson, Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, has officially dumped his movement to join the APC. When your own house is burning and your loyalists are fleeing, it is a foolish leader who turns around to blame the neighbors for not buying his wares.
Perhaps the most dangerous aspect of this tragic alliance is the flippant disregard for the national stability. Kwankwaso calls for unity beyond religion, yet he tethers himself to a man who weaponized faith just three years ago. This hypocrisy is not lost on the masses. As public affairs analyst Mahdi Shehu warned, if religious and traditional leaders continue to play politics with fire, they will be substantially responsible for any violence that erupts in 2027.
Kwankwaso and his fellow travellers need to accept a hard truth. The North is not a supermarket where they can shelf expired goods and expect a buying frenzy. The burden of that bad product is too heavy, and the people have already made their verdict known: the religious war declaration of 2023 cannot be erased by the political maneuvering of 2027.
Mohammed Bello Doka can be reached via [email protected]
Abuja Network News
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Opinion