DEFECT OR BETRAYAL? NNPP WARNS GOV YUSUF AGAINST APC MOVE, VOWS TO DEFEND KANO’S MANDATE

Kano Politics Boils as Party Raises Alarm Over Alleged Late-Night APC Meeting
The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in Kano State has issued a stern and emotionally charged warning to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, urging him to remain steadfast on the platform that carried him to power and cautioning that any defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC) would amount to a grave betrayal of the people’s mandate.
Addressing journalists in Kano on Monday, the State Chairman of the NNPP, Hashimu Dungurawa, spoke with unmistakable firmness, declaring that the party would neither endorse nor excuse any move by the governor to abandon the NNPP, the political vehicle through which Kano voters freely entrusted him with leadership.
According to Dungurawa, the NNPP’s mandate in Kano is sacred, collective, and non-transferable, stressing that millions of voters cast their ballots not merely for an individual, but for the ideology, structure, and reformist promises of the NNPP.
“The people of Kano voted massively for Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf on the NNPP platform. Any attempt to leave that platform is a direct affront to the trust and confidence reposed in him by the electorate,” he said.

Dispelling notions of a fractured party beyond repair, the NNPP chairman revealed that intense reconciliation efforts are ongoing to address internal disagreements, insisting that dialogue—not defection—remains the party’s chosen path.
“We have exhausted several avenues and are still exploring every available channel to maintain unity within the NNPP. We are appealing to our members to remain calm, committed, and loyal to the party,” Dungurawa stated.
He further dismissed speculations suggesting that the party’s national leader and political icon, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, was privy to or supportive of any alleged defection plot.
“Let me make it categorically clear: our party and our national leader, Dr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, have absolutely no hand in what is being speculated. Any narrative suggesting otherwise is false and misleading,” he emphasized.
Dungurawa also issued a sharp warning to political actors allegedly attempting to sow discord between Governor Yusuf and Kwankwaso, describing such moves as calculated attempts to destabilise Kano’s political equilibrium.
“Those trying to create artificial cracks between the governor and our national leader must desist. They are enemies of progress and are only interested in confusion and political chaos,” he warned.
The NNPP’s alarm comes on the heels of widespread reports of a late-night political meeting between Governor Yusuf and two prominent APC figures from Kano State:
Alhaji Kabir Alhassan Rurum, member representing Rano, Kibiya and Bunkure Federal Constituency, and
Dr. Baffa Babba Dan’agundi, Director-General of the National Productivity Centre.
Credible political sources suggest the meeting has intensified speculation over a possible defection to the APC, alongside discussions surrounding the sensitive issue of zoning the deputy governorship slot to Kano South Senatorial District—a zone that has never produced a deputy governor since the state’s creation.
In a final appeal, the NNPP leadership urged its members and the governor to rise above political distractions and concentrate on delivering dividends of democracy to Kano people, particularly in agriculture, youth empowerment, and support for small and medium-scale enterprises.
“Politics must not derail governance. The people expect action, development, and relief—not uncertainty and political gymnastics,” the party said.
As Kano’s political temperature rises, the NNPP’s message is unmistakable: the party will defend its mandate, protect its legacy, and resist any move it perceives as a betrayal of the people’s will.
Ahmad Sorondinki, Kano