Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, Senior Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Print Media, has dismissed speculations surrounding the president’s recent meeting with Rabiu Kwankwaso, the 2023 presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), saying there is nothing unusual about the interaction.
Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme on Monday, Abdulaziz said, “Politicians talk; it’s not a sin talking across lines. So, the presidency or friends of the president talking to Kwankwaso, or the other way round, should not be seen as anything strange or looked at with suspicion.”
He emphasized that both leaders have shared a longstanding political relationship spanning over three decades, dating back to their time as senators and governors in the late 1990s.
“President Tinubu is someone who has built relationships over a long career in politics. Both he and Kwankwaso were elected members of the National Assembly during the 1993 transition and later became governors in 1999. So, it’s not unusual to see them reuniting or realigning under any political arrangement,” he added.
The aide clarified that dialogue and political realignments are common in Nigeria’s political landscape and should not automatically imply partisan defection or political deals.
Observers believe the Tinubu-Kwankwaso engagement may signal a strategic realignment ahead of future elections, although no official alliance has been confirmed by either camp.
