NNPP’s Buba Galadima dismisses SDP defections, calls party an ‘APC branch’

Alhaji Buba Galadima, a chieftain of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), has downplayed the recent wave of defections to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), insisting that the party is merely an extension of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Speaking on Arise Television on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, Galadima dismissed concerns over NNPP members joining the SDP, arguing that the party is an “appendage” of the APC.

“The SDP that you talked about in your introduction is a branch of the APC. It was those APC people that moved to what you now call SDP. Nothing more. How many people from other parties have moved to the SDP? That is the question people should ask. So, it is not out of place. You’re in Lagos, and this is the character of Lagos—to decimate opposition,” he stated.

His comments came in response to former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s call for opposition figures to unite under the SDP ahead of the 2027 general elections.

El-Rufai, who defected from the APC to the SDP earlier in March, has been urging key political figures, including Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP), Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Rauf Aregbesola, a former APC ally of President Bola Tinubu, to join the SDP in a bid to challenge the ruling party in 2027.

However, not all opposition figures have welcomed his proposal. Former Jigawa State Governor and PDP stalwart, Sule Lamido, outrightly rejected El-Rufai’s invitation, calling it an “insult.”

In a BBC Hausa interview on Sunday, March 16, 2025, Lamido reminded El-Rufai that the PDP laid the foundation for his political career, questioning his sudden change of allegiance.

“Leadership is about patience, vision, and working for the peace of the people and the country as a whole,” Lamido remarked.

Reaffirming his commitment to the PDP, he insisted that the party had not wronged him in any way that would warrant his defection.