President-elect, Bola Tinubu on Tuesday held a meeting with Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, one of his opponents in the February 25, 2023 elections, signalling a desire for unity and collaboration.
Kwankwaso, who ran on the platform of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) and secured a victory in Kano State, a stronghold of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), placed fourth in the overall election results.
Sources have confirmed that the two leaders spent several hours together in Paris, the capital of France, on Monday.
During their meeting, Tinubu reportedly emphasized the importance of reaching out to political associates and fostering a spirit of cooperation among them.
The President-elect and Kwankwaso agreed to continue their discussions in subsequent meetings.
Accompanied by his wife and Abdulmimin Jibrin, an NNPP lawmaker-elect, Kwankwaso attended the meeting with Tinubu.
Tinubu’s wife, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, and Femi Gbajabiamila, the outgoing Speaker of the House of Representatives, were also present.
Details Of The Meeting
According to a source familiar with the matter that spoke with Daily Trust, the meeting between the President-elect and Senator Kwankwaso lasted for over four hours behind closed doors.
It commenced at approximately 12:30 PM and concluded around 4:45 PM.
The discussions between the two leaders centred around their longstanding friendship dating back to their days in the National Assembly in 1992.
They also addressed matters of national unity, development priorities for the incoming government, upcoming national assembly contests, and the President-elect’s plan for a government of national unity.
During the meeting, Tinubu expressed his intention to reconcile Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano and Senator Kwankwaso.
The two had a falling out after Ganduje succeeded Kwankwaso as the Governor of Kano in 2015.
The source said, “The President-elect and Senator Kwankwaso met for over 4 hours behind closed doors in Paris on Monday. The meeting which started at about 12.30 pm ended at about 4.45 pm. The meeting was attended by the Speaker of the House of Representatives Hon Femi Gbajabiamila. Kwankwaso was accompanied to the meeting member-elect by Kano Hon Abdulmumin Jibrin.
“Sen Oluremi Tinubu was also there to receive Kwankwaso’s wife Hajia Salamatu who came with her husband. Discussions were centred around their long-term friendship since their days in the National Assembly in 1992, national unity and development, priorities for the new government, national assembly contests and the plan by the President-elect for a government of national unity which Kwankwaso has in principle accepted to join.”
