Cablegate: (U) Prominent Katsina Politician Discusses Prospects for A

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SUBJECT: (U) PROMINENT KATSINA POLITICIAN DISCUSSES PROSPECTS FOR A
PLANNED OPPOSITION "MEGA-PARTY"

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successfully fought through the courts.

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COMMENT
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7. (C) While opposition party leaders have discussed the idea
of establishing a "mega party" for some time, such efforts
remain at a formative and apparently critical stage. Uniting
behind an individual presidential candidate, rather than
forming a loose coalition, would obviously enhance prospects
for a "mega party" in the next national elections. We will
continue to monitor developments, including the December 9
arrest and detention of Bafarawa in a prison in Sokoto for
alleged misappropriation of public funds and money laundering
from his 1999 to 2007 tenure as governor.
SANDERS

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