Buba Galadima, a prominent figure in the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), has shed light on why the party decided against legally challenging Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s triumph in the 2023 presidential election.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that in an interview with ARISE TV, Galadima attributed the party’s choice to refrain from contesting Tinubu’s victory in court to a shortage of funds.
The NNPP leader shared this insight while discussing the recent meeting between Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of the NNPP and the President-elect.
Earlier, this newspaper reported on a meeting in Paris, France, between Tinubu and Kwankwaso. The meeting was orchestrated by Abdulmumini Jibrin, a member-elect of the House of Representatives who defected from the APC to the NNPP before the general elections.
While details of the meeting remain sketchy, sources suggest that the two politicians explored the possibility of a unity government and a potential political alliance between their respective parties.
When asked about the significance of such a meeting, Galadima downplayed its novelty, stating that similar encounters between politicians have occurred frequently throughout Nigeria’s political history.
He said, “Everything in Nigeria is news. Ordinarily, a meeting between two political leaders should not attract that kind of ecstasy by the citizenry.
“But you know Senator Kwankwaso contested against the president-elect in the 2023 election in which the NNPP came fourth. However, after the contest, we’re one party that didn’t go to court even though we’re the only people who have credible reasons to go to court. That in itself speaks volumes and can be interpreted in several ways.
“The actual situation is that meetings of such nature and even the idea of unity government are not something new in Nigerian politics. It happened in the First Republic between the NCNC and the NPC – that’s Azikiwe’s and Ahmadu Bello’s parties.
“Later, there was also a unity government that was formed between the NPC and the NNDP led by Chief Samuel Akintola of the Western Region. Of course it’s also on record that during the government of Shagari, the NPP led by Nnamdi Azikiwe had an agreement with the government of the NPN.
“So, it’s history that’s repeating itself. This is why there is the need to educate the young people about the history of their country.”
Regarding the NNPP’s decision not to pursue legal action, unlike the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party (LP), and others who challenged Tinubu’s victory in court, Galadima cited the party’s limited financial resources as the main obstacle.
“First, we have to place on record that it’s the PDP that has expelled both Kwankwaso and myself. So we wouldn’t have been in a race just to stop them from winning an election.
“But we also know that even going to court entails a lot of resources which we didn’t have. Our performance was measured solely on our credibility and not on the deep pocket.
“For anybody to go to court to challenge an election, that person must have not less than N5 billion naira. We don’t have that money to do that,” he said.
