‘I Am Not in Any Coalition’ — Ex-Minister Sirika Refutes Anti-Tinubu Rumours

Former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, has broken his silence over claims that he is among the politicians working to form a coalition against President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Rumours of his involvement spread shortly after he visited the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Tuesday, where he met with presidential aide, Bayo Onanuga.

But in an interview on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Wednesday, Sirika dismissed the speculation outright.

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“No, I am not,” he said when asked directly about his membership of the coalition.
He added: “Yesterday, I was with Chief Bayo Onanuga in the Presidential Villa and he said I was in the coalition. I told him I was not and never will be. He said he got that from the reports. People can join coalition, it is democracy.”

The alliance, led by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, recently announced that it had adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as its political platform for the 2027 polls.

Other prominent figures linked to it include former Rivers Governor Rotimi Amaechi and ex-Senate President David Mark, who now chairs the ADC.

Sirika insisted he has no connection with the opposition front. He also brushed aside suggestions that his courtesy visit to President Tinubu was an attempt to soften the ongoing corruption case against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

On that, he remarked: “The purpose of the meeting was to officially pay our condolences to the President, who did extremely well after the demise of our leader, President Muhammadu Buhari.”

The former minister, who left office in 2023, has been battling EFCC charges of abuse of office and contract inflation.

According to investigators, several multi-billion naira aviation contracts were awarded to firms linked to his daughter, Fatima Sirika, and his son-in-law, Jalal Hamma.