Shehu Gabam, the Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), on Wednesday, said there is no official statement regarding the immediate past Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, or allies of Atiku Abubakar joining the party.

New Telegraph had earlier reported that Gabam, El-Rufai, Segun Sowunmi, and Hamza Al-Mustapha held a strategic meeting to review the state of opposition democratic engagement in Nigeria.

Speaking on the closed-door meeting held at the SDP’s Secretariat in Abuja, Gabam told journalists that the was open to conversations centred around a better Nigeria.

He said: “There is no official statement from El-Rufai or any one of them about officially joining the SDP. As I said, they are open to conversation and negotiations for a better Nigeria. It’s not about a political party; it’s about the future of Nigeria.

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“We are looking for like-minded people who believe in the future of the country so that we can work together and uplift the individual standard of Nigeria.

“It’s not just them. The attention of the media only went to them. I have received a lot of dignitaries from different political parties in the office, discussing the way forward, how to stabilize the country, and how to offer productive, progressive advice to this government so that there will not be a crisis.

“Because once the government has a crisis, it affects every Nigerian. So, part of our responsibilities is to make sure we are not facing a crisis.

“There is an ongoing conversation. When the time comes, we will arrive at a conclusion, and we will hold an official press conference.

“Once we agree on what we are going to do together, we will unveil it to all Nigerians. But at the preliminary stage, we are having our own social gatherings and discussing national issues.

“So, principally, that’s what we are doing. More like-minded people are already on board. So today, there are other heavyweights involved, with whom we are discussing.”