Presidency slams El-Rufai over alleged attempts to woo Buhari, form opposition coalition
The Presidency has sharply criticized former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, following allegations that he is attempting to woo former President Muhammadu Buhari for a new political coalition.
Both the Presidency and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have dismissed the notion that any emerging opposition alliance could unseat President Bola Tinubu in 2027.
They have labeled the recent political moves by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and El-Rufai as nothing more than political theatrics.
This criticism comes after Atiku and El-Rufai, accompanied by a group of former governors including Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), Gabriel Suswam (Benue), Jibrilla Bindow (Adamawa), and Achike Udenwa (Imo), visited Buhari at his Kaduna home last week.
Atiku characterized the visit as a routine post-Sallah courtesy call, but many within the APC view it as part of a broader strategy to consolidate opposition forces against President Tinubu.
“There’s talk about major political parties forming a unified opposition front, but that wasn’t the purpose of our visit,” Atiku explained.
Amid rising speculation about possible defections, especially from the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) faction to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), APC National Secretary Senator Ajibola Bashiru dismissed such reports as baseless.
He questioned, “Which CPC bloc are they referring to? Was El-Rufai or Atiku ever part of the CPC? Have leaders like Garba Datti Mohammed or former Governor Al-Makura announced any intentions to leave?” He accused the media of exaggerating trivial political chatter.
In response to the reported formation of a coalition, President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, called the alliance an opportunistic attempt to seize power with no ideological foundation.
“This so-called coalition has no ideological foundation; it’s just about power,” Bwala stated.
“Even Peter Obi has said their objective is merely to take control. As for El-Rufai, he’s using them for his own political games.”
Bwala also revealed that El-Rufai’s efforts to recruit members from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) into the SDP had faced fierce opposition.
He shared that former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido strongly rejected the idea, reminding others of El-Rufai’s political rise through the PDP.
“El-Rufai was made a minister twice under the PDP.
Now he wants to pull those same people out? That’s not going to happen,” Bwala added.
Post Comment