By Mahmoud Muhammad Kano
In a significant move signaling a potential major realignment in Nigeria’s opposition politics, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde held a closed-door meeting on Tuesday, hosted by former military President General Ibrahim Babangida (rtd) at his hilltop residence in Minna.
The high-profile gathering, which lasted several hours, marks the first known direct engagement between Atiku and Makinde since a bitter falling out ahead of the 2023 general elections. Their rift was central to the internal crisis that rocked the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), ultimately undermining Atiku’s presidential campaign.
The 2023 dispute erupted when the PDP’s presidential candidate, Atiku, selected former Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate, sidelining former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike who was the preferred choice of a powerful faction within the party. The decision provoked a furious response from Wike, who was joined by Governors Makinde, Samuel Ortom of Benue, and others in the so-called “G-5,” a group that withheld support for Atiku’s candidacy while remaining in the PDP.
Tuesday’s meeting in Minna strongly suggests a deliberate effort to bury the hatchet. Sources indicate Atiku arrived at General Babangida’s residence around 1:30 pm, with Governor Makinde joining shortly after 2:10 pm, before the trio retreated for private discussions.
The reconciliation is made more plausible by the reported recent cooling of relations between Governor Makinde and his erstwhile ally, Nyesom Wike, now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory. This deterioration has created a strategic opening for new political partnerships.
The timing of the meeting is viewed by analysts as directly linked to the looming 2027 general elections. Last year, Atiku defected from the PDP to the African Democratic Congress (ADC), a coalition platform formed expressly to challenge President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid. He was joined by other political heavyweights, including former Anambra Governor Peter Obi, former Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai, and former Attorney-General Abubakar Malami.
While Governor Makinde has publicly stated he remains “comfortable” in the PDP, his cordial meeting with Atiku at the ADC leader’s new political base has ignited intense speculation that the Oyo State governor may be considering a move to the burgeoning coalition. Such a defection would be a major coup for the ADC and a severe blow to the PDP’s strength in the South-West.
The convener of the meeting, General Babangida, a veteran political strategist, is seen as playing a key role in facilitating this bridge-building effort. His involvement underscores the high-stakes nature of the discussions, which are widely interpreted as the first visible steps in assembling a formidable opposition front against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
When contacted, spokespersons for both Atiku Abubakar and Governor Makinde declined to give details of the closed-door talks, stating only that it was a “private meeting of elders and stakeholders.” Political observers, however, are convinced that the Minna summit is a clear precursor to the intense alliance-building expected to dominate the run-up to 2027.
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