Nasir el-Rufai, the former governor of Kaduna state, says the opposition coalition can defeat the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027 without support from governors.
Speaking to journalists on Monday in Kano, el-Rufai said the coalition’s strategy should be focused on grassroots mobilisation rather than courting political bigwigs.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors’ forum recently rejected any alliance or merger talks.
“We are trying to offer Nigerians a real alternative — something different from what they have seen before,” Daily Trust quoted el-Rufai as saying.
“A governor has only one vote. Nigerians have many more votes than one governor or even 36 governors combined.
“It doesn’t matter if you gather all the governors together; if the people of Nigeria say they are not with you, it is over.
“The president had a sitting governor in Lagos — and still lost Lagos. So, what is the real value of a governor?
“I was the governor of Kaduna state. I fought hard to deliver President Tinubu in my state, but I lost. That taught me a hard lesson — that elections are ultimately decided by the people, not by political figures.”
He asked the Social Democratic Party (SDP) — his new political platform — to reinforce the message to Nigerians.
El-Rufai also said the coalition’s original plan did not include uniting with the main opposition party.
“From the beginning, our intention was never to merge with the PDP. We have been very clear about that. The PDP is a spent force. It is a party targeted for destruction, and, frankly, it has almost succeeded,” he said.
“We are not looking at political parties that are already ravaged by internal conflicts. We are building something fresh, something that will inspire hope.
“When Nigerians look at the faces involved, they will hopefully say: ‘Yes, maybe this time it will be different’. That is the goal, and it is ongoing.
“Our objective is not to merge political parties. We have been through that before, and we know how long and complicated that process is.
“What we are trying to do is bring like-minded people — who believe Nigeria needs real change — under one umbrella.”
The ex-federal capital territory (FCT) minister said the SDP was chosen following a thorough review of parties expected to remain registered after INEC’s post-election de-registration exercise.
“As you know, INEC now has the power to deregister parties without any elected member at the state assembly level,” he said.
“We assessed the ones that cannot be deregistered, and concluded that the SDP ranked highest. It has pedigree, it has history — but it still needs building.
“Forming a party is easy. Building a party — registering members, holding congresses, building leadership from the polling unit to the national level — is the real work.”
He added that previous parties failed due to weak internal democracy and dominance by powerful figures, harping on the need for an inclusive platform free from individual control.