Obasanjo visits Babangida amid 2027 speculations

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Monday visited former military president, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, at his hilltop residence in Minna, the Niger State capital, amid fresh speculation over their alleged involvement in manoeuvring ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Obasanjo, who arrived via the Ahmed Bola Tinubu International Airport, Minna, was received by protocol officials from the Niger State Government House before proceeding directly to the elder statesman’s residence.

Sources told Daily Trust that the two former leaders held a closed-door meeting that lasted about 30 minutes, after which Obasanjo returned to the airport.

One of the sources said the visit may not be unconnected with national issues and the 2027 general elections, which are already gathering momentum.

Obasanjo has recently been in the news amid reports linking him to political permutations aimed at producing a joint ticket of Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso as presidential and vice-presidential candidates of the coalition-led African Democratic Congress (ADC). The proposed ticket, according to the reports, is being positioned to first challenge former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for the party’s presidential ticket and, if successful, to mount a broader opposition challenge against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.

The reports further suggested that the arrangement, allegedly being spearheaded by Obasanjo, includes an alternative plan for Obi and Kwankwaso to contest on another platform should they fail to secure the ADC ticket.

It was also reported that Babangida had encouraged Kwankwaso to leave the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) for the ADC, a move observers describe as part of a wider political strategy.

Both Obasanjo and Babangida have yet to make any formal comments on the speculations.

However, their meeting on Monday has been interpreted in political circles as a further step in advancing these permutations.

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