TheCable

Paul Ibe, spokesman of Atiku Abubakar, says he does not know what his principal discussed with Bola Tinubu when the two met on Saturday. 

Atiku, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 election, had a brief meeting with Tinubu, a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) when they met at Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport in Abuja. 

The two politicians were said to have exchanged views when they ran into each other at the airport, according to a photo shared on Sunday by Tunde Rahman, Tinubu’s spokesperson. 

Speaking with TheCable on Monday, Ibe confirmed the meeting but said he does not have details of the discussion. 

“I think they met at the airport, at the departure lounge. I wouldn’t have been privy to what may have been discussed because at that point I was either in Kaduna or on my way there,” he said. 

Tinubu was said to be on his way to Lapai, Niger state, to receive an honorary doctorate degree from IBB University, while Atiku was on his way to Kaduna for a wedding. Ahmadu Fintiri, governor of Adamawa state, was also seen to be a part of the meeting. 

Atiku and Tinubu have been political associates for years.

In 2007, Atiku was the presidential candidate for the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), a party Tinubu was a pioneer founder.

Again in 2015, both were members of the APC, a party in which Atiku had sought a presidential ticket. 

But Atiku returned to the PDP while Tinubu remained a leading figure in the APC who supported and worked for the candidature of Muhammadu Buhari.  

Their meeting have been trailed by reactions, with speculations that it might have something to do with the 2023 elections.