Amid the insecurity crisis rocking the northern states, former President, Muhammadu Buhari, ex-Vice President, Atiku Abubakar and former governors have met over the need to strengthen the country’s unity.
Also at the meeting were former governors including Sokoto state former governor, Aminu Tambuwal, and his Imo, Benue and Kaduna counterparts, Achike Udenwa, Gabriel Suswam and Nasru El-Rufai.
As gathered, the meeting was held in the former president’s house in Kaduna on Friday after they had observed the Jumaat prayer inside the Yahaya road mosque in the state.
The meeting, which was held under the guise of post-Sallah visit, has raised concerns among politicians ahead of 2027 with some arguing that the former president has suddenly become a rallying point after leaving Daura, Katsina state for Kaduna.
Addressing newsmen after the meeting, Atiku dispelled claims that the meeting was political but stressed that it was for the unity of the country.
He said: “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”.
The former president noted that his presence at the meeting was due to the traditional title he occupied, the Waziri of 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”, he added.
While describing Buhari as his mentor, El-Rufai urged the All Progressives Congress (APC) to consider the meeting as irrelevant since none of the participants hold public office to challenge the ruling party in the 2027 election.
He said: “We joined over faithful for Jumaat prayers at the Yahaya Road Mosque and had a sumptuous lunch at the Buhari Residence.
“By the way, our adversaries should not lose any sleep. It is not about politics. It is about unity and brotherhood. And since we are all politically irrelevant, we just prayed and enjoyed lunch with our mentor”.
