- Says consultations to unveil political direction ongoing
BY SEGUN ADEBAYO – Leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement and Presidential candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) in the 2023 general elections, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, is receptive to the idea of joining the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
This disclosure is coming from a member of the NNPP in the House of Representatives, Hon Abdulmumin Jibrin, who has already met President Bola Tinubu twice within few weeks.
Speaking on the Channels Television programme, Politics Today, Jibrin, representing Kiru/Bebeji Federal Constituency in Kano State, said, “The doors have not closed” on talks between Kwankwaso, and the President Bola Tinubu-led APC.
However, he dropped the hints that some highly-placed APC members from in the State are quite uncomfortable with Kwankwaso coming on board the ruling Party.
Suggesting internal resistance within the APC in Kano, where some so-called power brokers are likely to block a high-profile arrivals due to their personal ambitions, the lawmaker said, “Even within the APC in Kano, you may have a situation where some vested interest won’t want us to come in.”
Jibrin, who noted that such negative disposition is capable of slowing down any move in the immediate, described the Kwankwasiyya Movement as a potent political force that cannot be ignored.
He further volunteered, “If you say Kwankwaso is moving into APC, or we are moving to APC, even within the APC in Kano, you have a lot of people that wouldn’t want him to come.
“Perhaps, those who want to be governor, or those who don’t want to be governor. I’ve tried to ensure that, in the interest of Kano and Nigeria, there is some sort of stability in our polity, It is quite a complex process.”
According to him, ahead of the 2027 general elections, talks on Senator Kwankwaso’s political direction were still ongoing and things will become clearer as the days go by.
Adding clarity to his submission, Jibrin said, “But everyone knows that I’ve always advocated, even right from the beginning of the government, for us to work with a government of national unity.
“As far as that [joining APC] is concerned, he has always maintained that his doors are open, our doors are open for discussions. Everything is a possibility”.
With talks about Kwankwaso’s likely defection to the APC gaining traction ahead of the 2027 elections, Jibrin stopped short of affirming that he is joining the APC but said, “Well, I keep saying everything is a possibility.”
Despite claiming to be a Kwankwasiyya, the lawmaker maintained that he does not need the former presidential candidate’s permission to leave the NNPP.
He said, “No, at my age, I think I’m old enough to make decisions for myself” without any external influence.
Amid ongoing political realignments within the polity, the Kano State Chairman of NNPP, Hashimu Dungurawa, had in July, dismissed speculations that Kwankwaso will soon be jumping ship to join the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition.
Recalled that the official results released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the 2023 presidential election, Kwankwaso was in fourth position, scoring 1,496,687 votes, with President Tinubu’s winning scores being 8,794,726 votes.
If things go according to speculations, Senator Kwankwaso will be returning to a familiar turf having be part of the founding members of APC where he plied his political trade between 2014 and 2018.
