The presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has held a strategic meeting with his running mate, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, and other candidates of the party as part of efforts to strengthen its nationwide campaign ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The meeting, held on Monday at the Obidient Headquarters in Abuja, was attended by gubernatorial and senatorial candidates as well as other aspirants of the party from different parts of the country.

Obi disclosed the development in a post on his X handle on Tuesday, saying discussions centred on strategies to expand the party’s reach and take its political message to communities across the country, particularly rural areas and the hinterlands.

According to him, the meeting was also an opportunity to reassure the party’s candidates of his continued support and commitment to working with them to secure electoral victories in their respective states and constituencies.

Obi described Kwankwaso as his “dear elder brother” and reaffirmed that their joint ticket was aimed at providing an alternative to what he described as ineffective leadership in the country.

He said the NDC’s agenda would focus on lifting vulnerable Nigerians out of poverty, reducing the number of out-of-school children, supporting small and medium-sized businesses, improving national security, promoting unity and moving the country from a consumption-driven economy to one based on production.

Obi wrote: “Our discussions focused primarily on strategies to expand and deepen the reach of our party and take our message of national redemption to rural communities and the hinterlands.

“I reassured our candidates of my continued support in their respective states and constituencies. I also reaffirmed my commitment to working with them and undertaking the necessary groundwork to secure victory for our party.”

The meeting came amid renewed political activities ahead of the 2027 elections, with opposition parties intensifying efforts to consolidate their structures and mobilise support across the country.

However, Obi’s recent appearance at a worship service at Koinonia Global in Abuja has also triggered criticism from activist and lawyer Deji Adeyanju, who accused politicians and religious leaders of allowing places of worship to become platforms for political mobilisation.

Adeyanju, in a statement on Tuesday, condemned Obi’s presence at the service, where he was acknowledged by Apostle Joshua Selman, founder of Eternity Network International.

He argued that elections should be contested on the basis of policies, ideas and competing visions for the country rather than religion.

Adeyanju said the use of religious platforms for political activities could deepen the divisions witnessed during the 2023 elections, warning against what he described as a return to religious mobilisation in Nigerian politics.

He also criticised religious leaders who provide political platforms to politicians, insisting that places of worship should remain insulated from partisan campaigns and endorsement-seeking.