A pro-democracy group, Democracy Watch Initiative (DWI), has criticised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai over what it described as blatant political opportunism during the funeral rites of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
In a statement released in Abuja on Wednesday, DWI said Atiku and El-Rufai’s prominent appearance at Buhari’s funeral was less about paying genuine respects and more about using the occasion to project political relevance ahead of the 2027 general elections.
According to the group, their joint presence, alongside other opposition figures, amounted to “a staged media spectacle aimed at rebranding themselves as national unifiers while laying the groundwork for an opportunistic political alliance.”
DWI argued that Nigerians should not be swayed by such “theatrics,” warning that both men’s political histories are marked by actions that undermined national development. The group referenced Atiku’s alleged involvement in subsidy mismanagement and El-Rufai’s contentious tenure in Kaduna State as examples.
“The country is in mourning, yet these politicians chose this solemn moment to push personal ambition. It is a brutal form of opportunism,” the statement read in part.
Senior figures within the All Progressives Congress (APC) also echoed similar sentiments, dismissing the actions of Atiku and El-Rufai as “futile and politically opportunistic.” The Presidency, reacting through unnamed sources, described their moves as lacking substance and posing no serious challenge to President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Atiku and El-Rufai had visited Buhari’s Kaduna residence along with other opposition leaders, including Aminu Tambuwal and Gabriel Suswam. While the visit was officially described as a “courtesy call,” critics argue it was calculated to send a political message and rally support for a possible coalition against the ruling party.
DWI urged Nigerian youths and civil society organisations to remain vigilant, stressing that the emerging political moves by both leaders are “recycled strategies from discredited actors seeking relevance through public manipulation.”
