Former Kaduna State Governor Mallam Nasir El-Rufai has disclosed the formation of a cross-party political coalition that includes prominent figures from multiple parties, with one group led by former Buhari administration officials.
El-Rufai identified a key faction within the coalition led by former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, former Education Minister Emeka Nwajiuba, and former Attorney General Abubakar Malami. The group reportedly includes other former ministers from President Buhari’s administration.
Speaking to Arise TV from 12:23, El-Rufai explained the structure of the emerging political alliance. “Parties are not involved in this discussion. The opposition groups are led by individuals. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has a group of people from PDP; some are even from APC. There’s a group led by the trio of Rauf Aregbesola, Emeka Nwajiuba, and Abubakar Malami, and other former Buhari ministers, and this group has membership across all parties.”
The former governor described how various political leaders have assembled separate factions within the broader coalition. “Peter Obi has his group from the Labor Party, as well as the PDP, and so on. But it is the leaders of these groups that are in the discussion. We are not bringing parties together; we are not engaged in a merger. I am part of the leadership, but I’m not there representing SDP; I’m there as an individual with some political weight, no matter how small, in my state or in the northwest.”
He clarified the coalition’s approach to party affiliation and future political strategy. “Okay, so this is how all the groups and the coalition are formed. It has nothing to do with parties. But we all agreed that if we are able to come to a consensus about a political party to go into, we will leave our parties and join with all our followers. That is the understanding.”
The former governor emphasized that determining presidential candidates constitutes a separate and later stage in the political framework. He noted that candidate selection can only occur after the fundamental party structure and consensus have been established through proper procedures.
The former Kaduna governor expressed satisfaction with the current leadership’s approach to the consensus-building process, noting that leaders are focusing on the foundational steps rather than advancing personal political aspirations.
