Leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and former presidential candidate, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has said Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, and his political associates will eventually regret their decision to leave the party.
Kwankwaso said Governor Yusuf’s exit from the NNPP came as a shock, noting that he initially found it difficult to believe the development.
Speaking in his first media interview since the defection, Kwankwaso told the BBC that he was deeply disappointed by what he described as the transfer of the NNPP’s mandate and Kano voters’ support to a rival political camp without sufficient justification.
Governor Yusuf formally defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Monday, January 26, 2026, after announcing his resignation from the NNPP on Friday, January 23, less than three years after winning the governorship on the party’s platform.
At his defection event, Yusuf said his decision was based on his assessment of the political direction of the country and his belief that aligning with the APC would better position Kano State for development. He said he consulted widely before taking the decision.
However, Kwankwaso said the reasons given for the defection were issues that could have been resolved through dialogue. He also rejected claims of a major internal crisis within the NNPP, insisting the party remains peaceful and stable.
The NNPP leader further said that those who left the party but still claim loyalty to the Kwankwasiyya movement must make a clear choice, adding that the ideology cannot be separated from the party.
Kwankwaso also criticised the role of former Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje in welcoming Yusuf into the APC, saying it would not guarantee political success.
He maintained that Kano remains a stronghold of the NNPP and said efforts were underway to build alliances ahead of future elections, expressing confidence that Governor Yusuf and his allies would face political challenges in their new party.
Keywords: Kwankwaso, Abba Yusuf, NNPP, APC defection, Kano politics
