Former Kano State Governor and leader of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has endorsed the planned defection of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano State, and other elected officials of the party to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Kwankwaso made the announcement in a short video posted on Facebook on Tuesday and shared by his media aide, Saifullahi Hassan, a development that has sent shockwaves through the political landscape of Kano State.
The endorsement marks a significant reversal by the former governor, who had previously opposed the move and accused Governor Yusuf and other NNPP office holders of betraying the mandate freely given to them by the people of Kano.
According to Vanguard, explaining his new stance, Kwankwaso said his decision was informed by the need to allow party members to freely exercise their political rights and to ease growing internal tensions within the NNPP in the state.
According to him, the persistent disagreements and political pressure within the party had made it necessary to prioritise stability and cohesion over prolonged confrontation.
He said: “I have received several news, some good ones, but some so terrible. I received reports that Kano State Government is compelling state officials and elected local government chairmen to sign for either Gandujiyya or Kwankwasiyya”.
He added, “every of our supporters would not take this lightly. It is so disheartening that government would go down so low to be doing this”.
Kwankwaso, however, asked his supporters and followers to freely join the APC if they so wished.
“You should sign any documents given to you for the decamping to the APC; I have no problems with that”, he said.