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LONDON/ABUJA – Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, held a clandestine five-hour meeting at a private residence in London’s upscale Kensington district on Wednesday, sparking intense speculation about a major political realignment ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Multiple sources close to both camps confirmed to our correspondent that the meeting, which also included two former governors from the North-West and a chieftain of the Labour Party (LP), focused on the formation of a “National Salvation Coalition” aimed at unseating President Bola Tinubu.

The meeting is seen as a significant coup for Atiku, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who has been aggressively courting disaffected members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and opposition figures.

Fubara’s Defection Looms

While neither principal spoke to the press, a top aide to Governor Fubara, who spoke on condition of anonymity, revealed that the Rivers governor is “deeply frustrated” with the ongoing political crisis in his state and the perceived marginalization of his camp by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.

“Governor Fubara has not closed the door on the PDP, but he is also not closing the door on a new movement. The London meeting was about building a structure that can defeat Wike’s influence and the APC machine simultaneously,” the aide said.

Political analysts believe Fubara, who controls the strategic oil-rich Rivers State and its massive vote bank, could be the “missing piece” in Atiku’s puzzle. Should Fubara defect with his structure to a yet-to-be-named mega party, it would deal a devastating blow to the PDP’s existing hierarchy, which remains loyal to Wike.

APC Reacts, PDP in Panic

The APC, through its National Publicity Director, Felix Morka, dismissed the London talks as “a gathering of sore losers and political merchants shopping for relevance.”

“President Tinubu is focused on governing. Let them form their 50th coalition. It will fail like the others,” Morka said in a terse statement.

However, inside the PDP, the mood is one of panic. The party’s National Working Committee (NWC), still fractured between pro-Atiku and pro-Wike factions, has called an emergency meeting for Thursday. A senior party official admitted: “If Fubara walks, the South-South walks with him. That would be catastrophic.”

What They Are Saying

Ahead of the rumored defection, supporters of Governor Fubara have begun printing “Fubara 2027” campaign posters in Port Harcourt, depicting him as a vice-presidential candidate, though it remains unclear if he would accept the number two slot or demand the top position.

Meanwhile, the former Vice President’s camp is remaining coy. Atiku’s media adviser, Paul Ibe, simply texted: “When the time comes, Nigerians will know.”

As the political temperature rises, all eyes are now on the National Assembly, where sources say a critical mass of 45 lawmakers from the North-Central and South-East are preparing to decamp from the APC and PDP to an unnamed “third force” before the end of the quarter.

Developing story…

ABUJA – In a dramatic turn of events on the floor of the National Assembly on Tuesday, the Northern Senators Forum (NSF) officially withdrew its support for the controversial National Tax Reform Bill, throwing the Tinubu administration’s flagship economic policy into serious jeopardy.

The bill, which seeks to harmonize Value Added Tax (VAT) collection and create a new revenue-sharing model, has been fiercely opposed by 19 northern governors for the past month. The Senators’ decision follows a closed-door emergency meeting that lasted over four hours.

Addressing journalists at the National Assembly complex, the Chairman of the NSF, Senator Ahmed Kaita (Katsina North), argued that the proposed legislation creates a “dangerous economic fault line” between the North and the South.

“We have conducted a thorough analysis of this bill with our state governors and traditional rulers. The current template shortens the North. It penalizes agriculture-dependent states while rewarding states with ports and high corporate density,” Senator Kaita said.

“Until the Presidency agrees to a zonal renegotiation of the derivation principle from the current 10% to a fairer 30%, we will not allow this bill to see the light of day,” he added.

Executive moves to quell rebellion

The Presidency responded swiftly, with the Special Adviser to the President on Revenue, Mr. Olumide Soyinka, rushing to the National Assembly to hold a last-minute parley with the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

“We are in the season of difficult reforms. The President is open to input, but we will not abandon a policy that frees up fiscal space for sub-nationals,” Soyinka told State House correspondents.

However, political analysts warn that the standoff has exposed a deep ethnic rift within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Political science professor Tunde Odetola from the University of Ibadan noted: “This is not about tax. It is about the 2027 realignment. The North feels it is losing its demographic leverage to economic muscle from the South-West and South-South.”

Reactions

The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has seized on the chaos. Its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, released a statement calling the infighting a “vote of no confidence in the President’s economic management team.”

Meanwhile, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has called for nationwide protests by Monday if the bill is not withdrawn entirely, raising tension across Kaduna, Kano, and Katsina states, where armed police were seen deploying to strategic locations yesterday evening.

Details later…