•Ganduje and Atiku
All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje yesterday denounced former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s admission that the ongoing realignment by opposition political leaders was to dislodge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from office.
Ganduje boasted that no coalition by politicians who presently have no identifiable political base would stop the re-election of the President in 2027, reports The Nation.
He predicated his belief in the president’s re-election on the fact that the opposition movement comprises people that can’t reach a consensus on any issue because of their different political ideologies and selfish interests.
Atiku, at a news conference in Abuja by Concerned Leaders and Political Stakeholders in Nigeria, said the opposition leaders were teaming up to recreate the then opposition’s move that resulted in PDP’s defeat in 2015.
The collaboration of the Action Congress of Nigeria(ACN), Congress of Progressives Change(CPC), New Peoples Democratic Party (NewPDP) and All Progressives Grand Alliance(APGA) in 2013/2014 gave birth to the APC.
At the news conference addressed by Atiku were former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, APC former National Working Committee (NWC) member, Salihu Lukman and former APC National Chairmanship aspirant, Soni Monidafe.
Presidential candidate of the Labour Party(LP) for the 2023 general poll, Peter Obi was represented by Tanko Yinusa.
Others like former Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi and former Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi who are members of the coalition were said to have taken permission to be absent from the event.
But Ganduje in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Enlightenment Oliver Okpala, said the re-election of President Tinubu in 2027 was assured.
The statement reads: “Dr Ganduje does not have any fear of the re-election of President Tinubu in 2027. Tinubu will surely emerge victorious because of his untrammelled performance since he assumed office as President of Nigeria.
“Forget the recent political gatherings and rantings from some politicians who presently do not have any identifiable political base.
“Their gathering from the Labour Party, PDP, Social Democratic Party(SDP) and others are people with different political ideologies and selfish political interests that can never agree on any issue politically.
“The gathering is an assemblage of people with divergent political interests. No amount of political arrangement or gang up can stop the good people of Nigeria from re-electing Tinubu as President in 2027.”
Also yesterday, Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development Yusuf Abdullahi Ata described the gathering by the coalition members as a “political gambit dead on arrival.”
He said in a statement by his media aide, Seyi Olorunsola, that Atiku, Obi and El-Rufai, who he called “three elusive political wanderers” must understand that the country has moved past the era of “trial-and-error.
He advised the trio to wake up from their political slumber as Nigerians have already found competent leadership in Tinubu.
The minister argued that the Atiku, Obi and El-Rufai alliance lacks credibility and would not gain traction among Nigerians.
He described Atiku as a “serial contester” who has repeatedly faced rejection at the polls despite his many attempts to clinch the Presidency.
Similarly, he labelled El-Rufai as a “desperate power seeker” who lost credibility due to his self-serving political manoeuvres.
Also, Ata accused Obi of fostering ethnic and religious divisions by blackmailing competent and visionary leaders like Tinubu.
At the Abuja news conference, the Coalition said the emergency rule in Rivers State was unconstitutional. The group therefore demanded its immediate reversal.
It said: “This action is not only unlawful but also a clear subversion of democracy and imposition of autocratic federal control over a duly elected state government.
“We strongly condemn this development and call on all Nigerians of good conscience to resist this brazen assault on the Constitution of our country and institutions of our democracy.
“Mr. President’s illegal and unconstitutional proclamation was presumably driven by the protracted insidious political crisis in Rivers State, which culminated in the recent ruling of the Supreme Court.
“Naturally, we expected all parties to the dispute to follow laid-down procedures, and in good faith, to promptly implement the judgment of the highest court of the land.
“We note that despite provocative statements and the belligerent attitude of his opponents, Governor Siminalayi Fubara demonstrated goodwill and appeared disposed to the implementation of the judgment of the Supreme Court.
“However, rather than rise above the fray, the President yielded to petty favouritism and betrayed the oath that he solemnly swore to before God and man, which was to ‘do right to all manner of people, according to law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will.’
“If President Tinubu had conveniently disguised his true intentions in the past, his broadcast to the nation on March 18, 2025, betrayed his bias and fell far below the standard of comportment expected from his exalted office.”
It called on the president to reinstate Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu and the State House of Assembly.
The group also urged the judiciary to act swiftly in striking down the President’s proclamation because it sets a precedent that could be used to arbitrarily remove any governor in the future.
