By Adeola Badru

The former presidential candidate and national leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, yesterday held a closed-door meeting with Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, at the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Ibadan, amid mounting speculation over political realignments ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Kwankwaso, the NNPP’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections and a former governor of Kano State, paid what was officially described as a courtesy visit to the governor.

The high-profile nature of the engagement and the timing have fuelled suggestions that it may not be unconnected with calculations towards 2027, especially given Kwankwaso’s recent political activities and Makinde’s perceived strategic influence in national politics.

The former Kano governor was accompanied by the NNPP National Chairman, Dr Ajuji Ahmed; the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Ladipo Johnson; and the Secretary of the Board of Trustees, Buba Galadima, alongside other senior party officials.

The NNPP delegation was in Oyo State to inaugurate the party’s state office and deliberate on internal party matters.

Nonetheless, the meeting with Governor Makinde, a leading figure in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), attracted widespread public attention due to the differing political platforms of the two leaders.

After a two-hour closed-door session, Kwankwaso addressed journalists and dismissed insinuations that the visit was aimed at cementing a cross-party alliance.

“This visit is more about personal friendship than party politics. Governor Makinde and I have known each other for a long time. Before proceeding to our party engagement in the state, I felt it was proper to pay him a courtesy call,” he said.

Kwankwaso also used the opportunity to reflect on his political trajectory, recalling that he was among the founding members of the PDP in 1998 and was elected Governor of Kano State in 1999 on the party’s platform.

He later served as Minister of Defence under the PDP administration and returned for another tenure as governor in 2011, again under the PDP.

He subsequently defected to the All Progressives Congress before emerging as the National Leader of the NNPP.

Despite the public remarks, neither Kwankwaso nor Makinde disclosed details of the matters discussed during their private deliberations as of the time of filing this report.

Meanwhile, the NNPP delegation was expected to proceed to the inauguration of the party’s state office in Oyo State.