Balarabe Musa, former governor of Kaduna State, on Friday waved aside the orchestrated meeting between the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential flagbearer Atiku Abubakar and former President Olusegun Obasanjo.The fearless crussader said that Abubakar’s renewed association with Obasanjo will reduce the possibility of the former becoming Nigeria’s next president.
As reported by the Daily Post, Musa warned that the presidential candidate’s romance with Obasanjo may lead to President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress, APC, emerging winner of the 2019 presidential election.
Abubakar, who was the Vice President under Obasanjo’s administration between 1999 to 2007, have endured a sour relationship with his former boss since they left power.
But on Thursday, Abubakar mended fences with Obasanjo in a meeting attended by Bishop David Oyedepo in Abeokuta, Ogun State. Also at the meeting was Bishop Matthew Kukah and Sheikh Ahmed Gumi.
During the meeting, Obasanjo declared that he has forgiven Abubakar and was ready to help him “mend fence” internationally.
Reacting to the meeting, Musa stated that the reconciliation gives a wrong impression to Nigerians. Stressing that the relationship between Obasanjo and Atiku was so bad, adding that the reconciliation was “doubtful”.
Musa said: “His association or reconciliation with Obasanjo is definitely a problem. I insisted that the reconciliation is doubtful because the relationship between them is so bad that nobody can imagine that they will reconcile so quickly.
“However, it has happened and I think the close relationship with Obasanjo is a problem for Atiku because it now seems that he is being adopted by the former president, I think it’s a lot of problem for him.
“That PDP coalition led by Obasanjo portrays a problem for Atiku because it gives the impression whether right or wrong that the PDP is being supported by a former president who is opposed to Buhari and is afraid of what he will do to him. This means that there is a credibility problem.
“His (Atiku’s) chances if it ever existed at all, is now reduced by his association with Obasanjo who is afraid of being probed by Buhari and I think that there is a credibility problem which may even favour APC and Buhari in 2019.”
