What is Saraki up to in 2027?

In the high-stakes chessboard of Nigerian politics, few players are as enigmatic—or indeed as calculated—as Bukola Saraki. A former Senate president, two-term governor, and political heir to Kwara’s most formidable dynasty, Saraki now sits in strategic silence. With the 2027 elections looming, the smart observer will not ask what Saraki will do; no, the question would be when and how.

After a double blow in 2019 and 2023 that ousted him from both national relevance and state dominance, many assumed Saraki was out of the game. But recent gatherings in Ilorin and private meetings with loyalists suggest otherwise. He’s not retreating—he’s recalibrating.

Rumours of a return to APC have been flatly denied. Saraki, insiders say, is not interested in making a spectacle. Instead, he may be charting a Wike-style course: staying in PDP, hedging his bets, and leveraging quiet influence rather than visible rebellion. It’s a shrewd move in a fragmented opposition where funding is scarce and loyalty is transactional.

Unlike other opposition figures jockeying for coalition space, Saraki is playing the long game. He’s skeptical of merger talks and dismissive of hastily formed alliances that lack structural teeth. He may not be building a new party, but he’s certainly rebuilding his old one—from the inside out.

Back in Kwara, the Saraki political machine is bruised but not broken. Party chieftains insist the dynasty lives, and Saraki appears committed to restoring its muscle. He’s not chasing presidential fantasies—at least not for now. Instead, he’s quietly shoring up influence that could prove decisive in a tightly contested 2027.

A Machiavellian move? Perhaps. But then again, Saraki has never needed the loudest megaphone to make the sharpest incision. His silence isn’t withdrawal—it’s timing. And if Nigerian politics has taught us anything, it’s this: never count out a man who knows when to strike.