According to Daily Post News, Buba Galadima, a senior figure in the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), has recounted how a northern group brought the late President Muhammadu Buhari into Nigerian politics.
Speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Tuesday, Galadima revealed the circumstances that led to Buhari’s entry into the political arena.
He explained that Buhari was drawn into politics because of the actions of the Oduduwa Peoples Congress (OPC), which, between 1999 and 2000, stormed Ilorin with the intent of dismantling what it referred to as Fulani structures.
Galadima said his northern group felt the situation was intolerable, noting that former President Olusegun Obasanjo and then-Lagos State Governor Bola Tinubu were not doing anything to address the threat.
Galadima said, “Some of us who recruited Buhari had a mission. And I will reveal that mission today.”
“General Buhari came into politics. It was not his province. He never liked the politicians because he believed we are fake and that we do not mean what we say.”
He continued by saying there was a particular incident that prompted them to reach out to Buhari, persuade him, and involve others in convincing him to join politics, even though they had their own motives.
“In 1999 and 2000, the OPC went on a violent spree in some parts of the country, especially in the South West, and made life unbearable for many northerners. They even mobilised over 500 vehicles and marched to Ilorin with the sole aim of removing what they called Fulani structures.
We thought that was far too much, and neither President Obasanjo nor Governor Tinubu did anything. In fact, we believed their leaders in power were encouraging such actions. So we asked ourselves, How do we put an end to this?”
He said, “I called a meeting in Kaduna, about 34 of us, and we sat down to reason. How do we save our people from this OPC menace?
Galadima explained that during the meeting, he suggested that there are only two ways to remove a government — by force or through the ballot — and argued that the ballot was the better path. Although many believed it would be impossible to challenge Obasanjo at the polls, Buhari came to their minds as the right person for the task.
“When we approached him, he spoke very harshly about politicians. But since he didn’t outrightly refuse, we kept pressing him until he agreed.”
Galadima further said that once Buhari accepted, they organised a grand event to introduce him into partisan politics.
“As soon as Buhari joined, the Obasanjo administration became uneasy and visibly shaken. They had no choice but to rein in the OPC.
In that way, we achieved our initial goal of stopping the OPC by bringing Buhari into politics.
