Tinubu Meets Jibrin for Second Time Amid Speculation That Kwankwaso is Joining APC

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

For the second in ten days, the lawmaker representing Kiru/Bebeji Federal Constituency in Kano State, Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin Kofa, Sunday night, held a meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu behind closed-doors.

THISDAY gathered that the meeting, which took place at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, began at about 9:00 pm and lasted until nearly 11:00 pm, underscoring what insiders describe as “serious and sensitive political discussions.”

Although Jibrin did not disclose the agenda, sources privy to the meeting hinted that the talks might have revolved around the relationship between President Tinubu and former Kano State governor, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, as well as growing anti-APC sentiment in certain political quarters in the North.

During his first visit, he had told State House Correspondents that their conversation centred on “issues of national development,” without offering further details.

When approached after Sunday’s late-night meeting, Jibrin declined comment, reinforcing speculation that the discussions were part of ongoing political alignments that could shape Kano’s and by extension, northern Nigeria’s, political future ahead of the 2027 elections.

A source close to the lawmaker reiterated that Kano remained one of the most politically strategic states in Nigeria, both for its voting population and its history as a swing state in presidential elections.

“The city has also been a hotbed of political rivalry, with shifting alliances between APC stalwarts and influential opposition figures such as Kwankwaso, the national leader of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP).

“And Jibrin is a close ally of Kwankwaso, so you can guess what these two meetings were all about. I won’t say much.”