The national leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Kwankwaso, has said his recent closed-door meeting with Seyi Makinde, governor of Oyo State, was a courtesy visit based on longstanding personal ties rather than political negotiations.
Kwankwaso, the NNPP’s 2023 presidential candidate and former governor of Kano State, met Makinde on Wednesday at the governor’s office in Ibadan.
The meeting, which lasted about two hours, coincided with Kwankwaso’s visit to Oyo to inaugurate the party’s new state office and deliberate on internal matters with senior NNPP officials, including Ajuji Ahmed, national chairman; Ladipo Johnson, publicity secretary; and Buba Galadima, secretary of the board of trustees.
Addressing journalists afterwards, Kwankwaso dismissed suggestions that the meeting signalled possible cross-party alignments ahead of the 2027 general election.
“This visit is more about personal friendship than party politics,” he said.
“Governor Makinde and I have known each other for a long time. Before proceeding to our party engagement in the state, I felt it was proper to pay him a courtesy call.”
Neither party disclosed details of their discussions.
However, the engagement attracted attention among political analysts, particularly in light of the recent political developments in Kano. Abba Yusuf, a close ally of Kwankwaso, officially defected from the NNPP to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on 26 January 2026.