The Kano State chapter of the All Progressives Congress has described as laughable Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso’s claim that he would significantly reduce the party’s votes in Kano during the 2027 elections.
Kwankwaso, a former governor of Kano State, is the leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement and the ruling New Nigeria People’s Party in Kano.
In a statement on Thursday, the Kano APC Chairman, Abdullahi Abbas, called on Kwankwaso to stop “daydreaming” and instead focus on reclaiming his membership in the NNPP.
Abbas characterised Kwankwaso as a “political refugee,” accusing him of clinging to Kano State, Governor Abba Yusuf, “like a leech” in a futile bid to regain relevance.
“Our teeming supporters in the APC have no cause to worry about Kwankwaso, who has been booted out of the NNPP due to his cluelessness and self-centredness. We expect Kwankwaso to keep wondering why he has become a wanderer in the political terrain,” Abbas said.
“He ran away from the APC because he couldn’t fit into our progressive ideals. His over-bloated ego and domineering posture forced him to abandon the PDP, and he has now become a political refugee because the NNPP refused to accommodate him.”
Abbas further assured APC supporters that the party would not tolerate a repeat of what he described as “vote manipulation and allocation” during the 2023 elections, which he claimed created a false impression of the NNPP’s strength in Kano.
“The APC is already waiting in the wings to not only reclaim Kano State but also save the people from the undue influence of Kwankwaso, who rules from his Miller Road castle,” he added.
The statement was in reaction to Kwankwaso’s remarks during a recent meeting at his residence in Kano, where he claimed to have received former councillors and senior special advisers from the administration of Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje.
Reflecting on the 2023 elections, Kwankwaso said, “Despite being a new political platform and starting our campaign late, we achieved this remarkable feat.”
He noted that the NNPP’s efforts sidelined the Peoples Democratic Party, which struggled to secure just 15,000 votes in Kano.
“Now, it’s our turn to diminish APC’s influence. We will work tirelessly to ensure their votes are reduced to less than 15,000 in Kano come 2027,” Kwankwaso declared.