According to the report from the Daily Post, Segun Showunmi, a prominent Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) strategist, offered critical insights into electoral politics, emphasizing the necessity of pragmatic political maneuvering for opposition parties seeking electoral success.
“A party that’s in opposition must be more pragmatic in looking for where it can get numbers,” Showunmi declared, highlighting the strategic imperatives facing political organizations outside the ruling party.
The political analyst addressed the unwritten rules of party candidacy, acknowledging the traditional protocol that typically grants incumbent leaders first refusal on candidacy. His commentary particularly focused on the challenges of challenging a sitting president in their home territory.
“You now have a Yoruba man in President Bola Tinubu as the potential presidential candidate of APC and you are saying you can come to a Yoruba man’s land to come and beat him, that’s an exotic calculation,” Showunmi noted candidly. “I may be wrong,” he added, demonstrating a rare moment of self-reflection in political commentary.
Showunmi’s analysis underscores the complex geographical and demographic considerations that political parties must navigate when developing electoral strategies, emphasizing that success requires more than mere ambition or rhetoric.
His observations provide a nuanced perspective on the intricate dynamics of Nigerian political competition, suggesting that opposition parties must carefully calculate their approach to maximize potential electoral support.