In a retaliatory action, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, on Friday led members of the party’s National Working Committee to visit former President Muhammadu Buhari at his residence in Kaduna State.
This visit occurred just hours after former Vice President Atiku Abubakar led a delegation from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for a courtesy call on the former president.
The PDP delegation included notable figures such as former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai; former Governors Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto, Achike Udenwa of Imo, Gabriel Suswam of Benue, and Jibrilla Bindow of Adamawa; along with former Minister of Justice and Attorney General Abubakar Malami, and former Minister of Communications Isa Pantami.
After the meeting, El-Rufai spoke to reporters, stating that their visit to the former president was not politically motivated and urged “adversaries” not to worry. He emphasized that the visit was intended to promote “unity and brotherhood.”
The results of the APC NWC’s visit are still unclear, especially given ongoing speculations regarding disunity within the party, particularly after some members recently defected to the Social Democratic Party. Meanwhile, Atiku clarified that his visit was related to the Sallah celebration rather than any discussions about a coalition.
In a post on his official X handle, Atiku wrote, “As the Waziri Adamawa, I was obligated to be in Adamawa during the Sallah celebrations. I held forth for the Lamido Fombina (Adamawa) in some of the activities of the Sallah celebrations. Today, I had the opportunity to pay a post-Sallah visit to His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2015-2023. It was a wonderful time with him. As usual, he cracked me up (to the extent that my ribs were hurting) with his peculiar humour.”