Former Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, has rejected a claim by a chieftain of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Buba Galadima, that he is coordinating a seven-man opposition group working to unseat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 election.
Galadima had made the claim during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday while discussing efforts by opposition politicians to challenge Tinubu at the polls.
According to him, the opposition parties cannot legally present a single candidate on a joint platform against the President and should instead field separate candidates before rallying behind whoever emerges as the strongest challenger.
“Technically, legally, other opposition parties cannot produce one single candidate on the ballot to face Tinubu. We have passed that stage,” Galadima said.
He said the strategy would involve allowing multiple opposition candidates to contest before supporters are encouraged to back one candidate if it becomes clear shortly before the election that the person can defeat Tinubu.
“It’s the only way to tackle Tinubu politically and defeat him, and I stand by that,” he added.
Galadima subsequently claimed that he was one of seven opposition figures meeting under Fayemi’s coordination to work towards the objective.
“I am part of the group of the opposition candidates, seven of us meeting under the coordination of ex-Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State to try to work on that. And we are making progress,” he said.
Asked what the group was working towards, Galadima replied, “defeating Tinubu”.
He also claimed that some serving ministers and governors were privately sympathetic to the opposition, alleging that some were “with Tinubu during the day and with us at night.”
However, Fayemi’s media team has dismissed the allegation, insisting that the former governor remains committed to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
One of his media aides, Julius Ogunro, said there was no truth in Galadima’s claim.
“There’s no truth in that claim. The head of the Fayemi Media Office, Mallam Ahmad Sajoh, had earlier responded to such claim. It is not true,” Ogunro said.
The aide was referring to an earlier denial by Sajoh following a similar claim made by former Rivers State Governor and ADC vice-presidential candidate, Rotimi Amaechi, in August.
Amaechi had claimed that he and Fayemi were among those who initially began discussions on forming an opposition coalition before the talks were expanded to other stakeholders interested in establishing a new political party.
Fayemi’s media office subsequently rejected the claim.
“We unequivocally state that these claims lack any basis. Dr Fayemi remains a committed member and leader of the APC in Ekiti State,” Sajoh had said.
He added that Fayemi had consistently affirmed his commitment to the APC at public engagements in Ekiti and across the country, while working to address challenges within the party and advance its stated political ideals.
Fayemi served two non-consecutive terms as governor of Ekiti State on the APC platform between 2010 and 2022.
He had recently described the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar’s proposal on fuel subsidy as a political strategy similar to the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket adopted by APC in the 2023 election.Fayemi, who acknowledged that the proposal could resonate with Nigerians who have been adversely affected by the removal of petrol subsidy, reiterated his support for the removal, saying he had advocated the policy for years, including during his tenure as chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum.
“What President Tinubu inherited, in fairness to him, was the work that had already been completed by that administration. The only challenge I had with it was the way it was done,” he had stated.
