Mr Adefowora Abiodun, one of the suspected promoters of the cryptocurrency trading platform, Crypto Bridge Exchange (CBEX), has voluntarily surrendered to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Abiodun, accompanied by his lawyers, turned himself in at the EFCC headquarters at 4pm on Monday, April 28, and expressed his willingness to cooperate with investigators.

The EFCC had last week declared him and seven others wanted over alleged involvement in a fraudulent investment scheme valued at over $1 billion. Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja had granted an application by the EFCC to arrest and detain the suspected CBEX promoters pending the conclusion of investigations and possible prosecution.

In granting the application, Justice Nwite said;

“I have listened to the submission of learned counsel for the applicant (EFCC). I have also gone through the affidavit evidence and exhibits, along with the written address. I am satisfied that the application is meritorious and hereby grant it as prayed.”

Speaking on behalf of his client, counsel Babatunde Busari, Esq., said Abiodun decided to submit himself for investigation to clear his name and correct the narrative in the media.

Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo SAN, has stated that it is impossible for a political coalition to unseat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.

Speaking during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, April 28, Keyamo characterised the coalition plans by some political elites as “a storm in a teacup” that would not survive the strength of the All Progressives Congress (APC) structure.

“There is no tsunami coming,” Keyamo declared. “I think it’s a storm in a teacup. I respect these people, but if you look at the political history of Nigeria… I have campaigned for two presidents, so I have knowledge of the demography. It is impossible for you to do a coalition now to unseat the present President (Tinubu).”

Keyamo was responding to remarks made by Labour Party chieftain Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed and other northern figures, including former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai and former vice president Atiku Abubakar, who have hinted at forming an opposition coalition.

Baba-Ahmed had accused the Tinubu administration of overseeing widespread rot and urged Nigerians to seek alternatives in 2027. Some elements within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have also been rumoured to be exploring a merger, although several PDP governors have distanced themselves from the idea. Former Ekiti State governor Ayo Fayose described the coalition discussions as “a dead horse” and “a waste of time.”

When asked if the APC could withstand the alleged political “tsunami,” Keyamo insisted the coalition talks were either misguided or too late. “There are two different things they are talking about — a merger or an alliance. They should be very clear. If it’s a merger, forget it, because it’s too late to start a merger now,” he said. “With the process you have to go through — to register, get a new identity and all that — and with elections just around the corner by next year’s end, it is not feasible.”

Keyamo pointed to historical precedent, recalling that after the 2011 elections, President Tinubu had swiftly initiated merger talks with then-General Muhammadu Buhari, a process that took years of negotiation and coordination. “The moment we lost the 2011 elections, Tinubu flew to Kaduna and met General (Muhammadu) Buhari. It was a long process before the APC was birthed. These people (current coalition proponents) are not experienced enough,” he said.

“The President you are seeing now has gone through all of these, so he is just smiling and looking at all of them; he understands,” Keyamo added.

Addressing the influence of mass movements, particularly the Obidient movement associated with Peter Obi in the 2023 elections, Keyamo said, “The Labour Party was built around him and the Obidient movement. Go back to history — even Chief (Obafemi) Awolowo and Dr (Nnamdi) Azikiwe, despite being heroes, could not transcend the complexities of Nigerian elections without structures.”

He dismissed the notion of a rising wave of youth mobilisation threatening Tinubu’s re-election chances. “Under what platform?” he queried. “Did you see what happened in the 2023 elections? Despite the naira redesign policy and petroleum scarcity that were against our party, the structures of the APC held firm. It was like a house built on solid rock,” he said.

Keyamo further noted that President Tinubu enjoys “more friends in the North than in the South-West,” a factor he believes will again prove decisive in the forthcoming election. Following the recent defection of Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to the APC, Keyamo revealed he had surrendered party leadership in the state to the governor.

“Whether I have to make sacrifices like yesterday where we surrendered (party leadership in Delta), it is all irrelevant so long as we are strengthening APC the more for the re-election of Mr President,” he said.

The immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, who is among the top politicians in the emerging opposition coalition, has declared that the alliance does not require the backing of state governors to unseat President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.

Speaking during a media chat with journalists in Kano, El-Rufai, who recently defected from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Social Democratic Party (SDP), emphasised that the coalition’s strategy is centred on grassroots mobilisation rather than courting political elites.

“We are trying to offer Nigerians a real alternative — something different from what they have seen before,” El-Rufai said. “A governor has only one vote. Nigerians have many more votes than one governor or even 36 governors combined,” he added.

His comments come amid the rejection by the PDP Governors’ Forum of any merger or coalition talks ahead of the next election. After a high-profile visit to former President Muhammadu Buhari by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who was accompanied by El-Rufai and other coalition members, speculation had mounted that PDP governors might align with the opposition bloc. 

But following a meeting in Ibadan attended by the party’s acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Damagum, and several governors, the forum publicly distanced itself from the idea.

“We are not merging with anyone. We are focused on rebuilding our party for the future,” the forum stated.

Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom added another twist days later when he publicly pledged support for President Tinubu to complete his eight-year tenure during the launch of the Akwa Ibom–Cross River section of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.

“We believe in continuity, and Akwa Ibom will stand with Mr. President to complete his eight years in office,” Eno said.

This was swiftly followed by defections to the APC by Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, Atiku’s 2023 running mate Ifeanyi Okowa, and their allies, in a development widely seen as a blow to the opposition's efforts.

Reacting to these defections, El-Rufai insisted they had no impact on the coalition’s strength.

“The fact that one governor from the PDP has defected means nothing. We are not counting on governors to win elections. We are counting on the people,” he said.

“A governor has only one vote. Nigerians — millions of them — have more power than 36 governors combined. It doesn’t matter if you gather all the governors together; if the people of Nigeria say they are not with you, it is over,” he said.

He pointed to Tinubu’s own experience in Lagos during the 2023 election. “The president had a sitting governor in Lagos — and still lost Lagos. So, what is the real value of a governor?” he asked.

Reflecting on his own past, he admitted: “I was the governor of Kaduna State. I fought hard to deliver President Tinubu in my state, but I lost. That taught me a hard lesson — that elections are ultimately decided by the people, not by political figures.”

El-Rufai affirmed that the new coalition would be driven by citizens. “Governors do not determine election results. The people do. We want the SDP and our coalition to remind Nigerians of that fundamental truth,” he added.

On whether the coalition has begun discussions about its 2027 presidential candidate, El-Rufai made clear that such talks were premature.

“Our focus now is not on selecting candidates. It is on building the platform first. We have told all those with presidential aspirations: put aside your ambitions for now. Join us as equal members and help us build a credible alternative,” he said.

He acknowledged that those with strong followings are welcome, but warned against allowing ambition to drive the process.

“If and when all opposition groups come under the SDP, we will have that conversation. But for now, we must work together to build something Nigerians can trust,” he said.

Rejecting the politics of regionalism, El-Rufai said the coalition was looking beyond geographical origins in its search for leadership. “I no longer care where the president comes from. I want a candidate who can offer real solutions to Nigeria’s problems and excite Nigerians enough to come out and vote,” he stated.

He warned of dire consequences if the country’s trajectory remains unchecked.

“We are facing an existential crisis. It is not about North or South anymore. It is about survival, unity, and progress. Whoever can deliver that — wherever they come from — will have my support,” he said.

On the PDP governors’ refusal to join the coalition, El-Rufai clarified that a merger with the PDP was never on the agenda.

“From the beginning, our intention was never to merge with the PDP. We have been very clear about that. The PDP is a spent force. It is a party targeted for destruction, and, frankly, it has almost succeeded,” he said.

El-Rufai said the coalition aims to give Nigerians a fresh alternative, not a rebranded version of existing parties with longstanding crises.

“We are not looking at political parties that are already ravaged by internal conflicts. We are building something fresh, something that will inspire hope. When Nigerians look at the faces involved, they will hopefully say: ‘Yes, maybe this time it will be different.’ That is the goal, and it is ongoing,” he added.

He disclosed that efforts were underway to unite various opposition forces under the SDP platform.

“Our objective is not to merge political parties. We have been through that before, and we know how long and complicated that process is. What we are trying to do is bring like-minded people — who believe Nigeria needs real change — under one umbrella,” he said.

Explaining the choice of the SDP, he said it was based on an assessment of parties likely to survive deregistration by INEC.

“As you know, INEC now has the power to deregister parties without any elected member at the state Assembly level,” he explained. “We assessed the ones that cannot be deregistered, and concluded that the SDP ranked highest. It has pedigree, it has history — but it still needs building.”

He stressed the difference between forming and building a party.

“Forming a party is easy. Building a party — registering members, holding congresses, building leadership from the polling unit to the national level is the real work,” he said.

El-Rufai underscored the coalition’s commitment to internal democracy.

“What destroyed previous parties in Nigeria is a lack of internal democracy and the stranglehold of godfathers. We want to eliminate that. The APC started with hope, but it became controlled by one or two people. We want a party that no one owns, where everyone has a voice,” he said.