El-Rufai plays down merger talks, asks Atiku, Obi, Aregbesola to join SDP

Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna state, has appealed to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, ex-presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

El-Rufai moved to the SDP from the All Progressives Congress (APC) on March 10 over what he described as a divergence in values with the ruling party.

“Developments in the last two years confirm that there is no desire on the part of those who currently control and run the APC to acknowledge, much less address, the unhealthy situation of the party,” he had said.

“On my part, I have raised concerns in private and, more recently, in public regarding the capricious trajectory of the party. Therefore, at this point in my political journey, I have come to the conclusion that I must seek another political platform for the pursuit of the progressive values I cherish.”

In an interview published by BBC Hausa on Saturday, el-Rufai dismissed talks of a merger and urged opposition leaders — including Rauf Aregbesola, former governor of Osun, and Rotimi Amaechi, former governor of Rivers — to join the SDP to unseat President Bola Tinubu.

“My wishes and prayers are Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi, Rauf, all opposition leaders to come and join SDP, not to do a merger or to register a new political party,” he said.

El-Rufai said his support for Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election stemmed from the latter’s notable achievements as Lagos state governor, adding that he backed him with the hope that he could replicate the success nationwide.

“We know what Tinubu did in Lagos, we are all aware, but we said if he can do the same as he did that makes Lagos great, we said okay, let’s support him,” he said.

El-Rufai also addressed speculations about his presidential ambition in the 2027 election, saying the decision lies not with him but with his party and the people.

“It is not for me to decide, it is the party and the people that will decide. Even when I was contesting for governor, it was people that met and convinced (Muhammadu) Buhari, and he called me and asked me to contest,” he added.

Although el-Rufai had said he informed Buhari of his plan to resign from the APC, the former president subsequently declared that he remains a loyal member of the ruling party.