Daniel Bwala, the special adviser to the president on policy communication, has alleged that Ali Ndume, senator representing Borno South, is planning to join the opposition coalition.
Bwala spoke about this during his appearance on the Channels Television show “Sunday Politics.”
The two politicians have recently been arguing and criticising each other’s political views.
Ndume, who has openly criticized many of President Tinubu’s policies, opposed the president’s tax reform bills that were sent to lawmakers in 2024.
He even threatened to leave the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) because of these proposed laws.
However, the senator has clarified that he’s not criticizing Tinubu personally, just his policies. He says he still respects the president as his mentor.
Ndume has been “Dog Whistling”
On the TV show, Bwala claimed Ndume has done this kind of thing before. He accused the senator of being “a snitch” by holding secret meetings with opposition members before eventually joining the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
In 2010, the Borno lawmaker defected from the All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP) to the PDP, saying he was treated unfairly.
“Let me tell everyone today, especially Abdullahi Ganduje, the APC chairman: Senator Ndume’s heart is already with the opposition coalition; only his body is still in the APC. He’s already on his way out,” Bwala said.
“He did the same thing when he worked with Senator Ali Modu Sheriff. When he felt unsupported, that’s how he moved to the PDP. But before switching parties, he kept meeting with them behind the scenes, acting as an informant.”
“He was leaking information to the other side. The party chairman needs to be careful because Ndume is sending signals to the opposition. It would be better if he handled it like El-Rufai did.”
“El-Rufai simply announced, ‘I’m leaving.’ You have to respect El-Rufai more because he didn’t stay to be disloyal – he just left.”
“But this one claims to be loyal while thinking strategically, ‘If I stay and keep attacking from inside, people will say, ‘Wow, even a party member is criticizing them.’”
Looking ahead to the 2027 elections, opposition leaders, including former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi (who used to govern Anambra), and Nasir el-Rufai (former Kaduna governor), have been meeting to discuss forming a team to challenge President Tinubu when he runs for re-election.
El-Rufai and several of his supporters have already defected from the ruling APC to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP) as part of their future political plans.
