The Directorate of Mobilisation and Integration (DMI) has begun consultations with political and institutional stakeholders on potential alliances ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The move followed a national strategy meeting of the organisation, at which its leadership and coordinators reviewed the lingering leadership crisis in the Labour Party, ongoing court cases, and the organisation’s political strategy ahead of the elections.
The virtual meeting, titled ‘DMI Updates, State of the Nation and Strategies for 2027,’ drew more than 150 state coordinators from across the 36 states, with another 55 participants joining via the organisation’s WhatsApp platform.
The meeting was presided over by the DMI Director-General, Marcel Ngogbehei, a pioneer organiser of the Obidient Movement and former chairman of the Coalition for Peter Obi (CPO).
In a communiqué issued after the meeting, the DMI said it had mandated Ngogbehei and its leadership team to explore new political and institutional partnerships ahead of 2027.
The organisation, however, said the move did not amount to a declaration of a new political alliance.
It said it would maintain its strategic relationship with the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Labour Party, led by Julius Abure, while also engaging other political parties and institutions on possible areas of cooperation.
The DMI said the consultations were necessary because of changing political circumstances and the need to protect the interests of its members, coordinators and volunteers.
It said, ‘The proposed consultations are intended to identify possible areas of cooperation in response to changing political circumstances and the interests of DMI members and volunteers.’
The organisation also clarified its relationship with the Labour Party, saying it remained a strategic partnership and not an organisational merger.
According to the DMI, Abure facilitated the relationship, which evolved from cooperation between the Labour Party and the Obidient Movement ahead of the 2023 general elections.
It recalled that the process began in 2022, when Ngogbehei chaired the Coalition for Peter Obi, and culminated in the Labour Party/CPO Leadership Summit held at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, on August 11, 2022.
The summit was attended by Peter Obi, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the late Doyin Okupe, Abure, Labour Party candidates, campaign officials and support groups.
The DMI said the engagement provided a platform for cooperation between the Labour Party and the Obidient Movement ahead of the 2023 elections.
It, however, stressed that its membership, structures, and mission remained independent of the Labour Party’s internal affairs.
The meeting also reviewed the protracted leadership crisis in the Labour Party involving Abure, Senator Nenadi Usman, Peter Obi and Abia State Governor, Alex Otti.
The participants examined disagreements over party leadership, internal processes and zoning, as well as the possible effect of the dispute on grassroots members and volunteers who supported the party during the 2023 elections.
The DMI said the prolonged crisis had created uncertainty around a political platform into which many Nigerians had invested their time, resources and expectations.
The organisation also discussed Obi’ s subsequent move to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), particularly the zoning arguments that featured prominently during the Labour Party crisis.
It questioned how the zoning arguments advanced during the Labour Party dispute should be assessed against the political arrangement that subsequently emerged within the NDC.
The DMI said the issue required further discussion, particularly regarding the consistency and application of zoning principles.
On the ongoing litigation over the Labour Party leadership, the DMI identified three possible outcomes.
It said the Supreme Court could restore Abure to the party leadership, affirm Usman’ s leadership, or determine the limits of judicial intervention in internal party affairs, leaving outstanding issues to party processes or further proceedings before the appropriate courts.
The organisation said any of the scenarios could affect party administration, competing structures, candidate nominations, and preparations for the 2027 elections.
It said continued uncertainty could affect the party’ s preparations for the elections.
The DMI, however, resolved to maintain its organisational structures while the legal process runs its course.
It said it would prepare for different lawful outcomes while respecting binding court decisions and applicable electoral laws.
The DMI also presented an update on its nationwide organisational structure.
It said it currently had more than 500 state and Federal Capital Territory coordinators, as well as over 11, 000 coordinators across the country’ s 774 Local Government Areas.
According to the organisation, each coordinator has been tasked with recruiting at least 10 core operational team members.
It said the framework could produce a nationwide mobilisation and recruitment network of approximately 120, 120,000 coordinators and core team members, although verification of the expanded structure was still ongoing.
The DMI said the network was built through the contributions of citizens and volunteers and should therefore remain a citizen- participation resource rather than become the property of any political party, faction or individual.
It said the contributions of its coordinators and volunteers would remain central to decisions concerning its future direction.
The organisation also acknowledged Abure’s support, describing him as a chairman who had remained committed to the Labour Party project despite the internal challenges facing the party.
The DMI said the Labour Party crisis reinforced the need to build citizen-led institutions capable of sustaining their missions even when political parties or individual leaders change direction.
It said its mission remained broader than any single political partnership, pledged to preserve its nationwide structure, promote citizen participation in governance, and ensure that the efforts of its coordinators and volunteers continued to serve the public interest.