The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, on Friday led members of the party’s National Working Committee on a visit to former President Muhammadu Buhari at his residence in Kaduna State.
The high-profile meeting came shortly after a notable delegation of opposition politicians, spearheaded by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, also paid a courtesy visit to Buhari. That delegation included prominent figures such as former Kaduna State Governor Nasir el-Rufai, former Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal, and former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami.
Following the opposition leaders’ visit, Nasir el-Rufai addressed journalists and dismissed any political interpretations of the meeting, saying it was not driven by partisan motives. He said, “Adversaries should not lose sleep over it,” indicating that the visit was more personal than political.
Although the APC leadership has not made public the details of their discussions with the former president, their visit comes on the heels of another meeting earlier in the week, during which a delegation of APC governors, led by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, also met with Buhari. That earlier visit was to extend Sallah greetings and to congratulate the former president on the successful completion of Ramadan.
These series of visits—by opposition figures and ruling party leaders alike—have sparked widespread speculation, particularly concerning the rumoured defection of the Congress for Progressive Change bloc from the APC.
The CPC, which was one of the four legacy parties that merged in 2013 to form the APC, is regarded as having deep ties to Buhari, who was a founding figure and the party’s standard-bearer.
Despite the growing concerns, former President Buhari has reaffirmed his commitment to the APC and dismissed any notion of defection. He stated unequivocally that he remains loyal to the ruling party and has no intention of parting ways with it.
