Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and former presidential candidate, has expressed strong confidence that Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf and his political allies will eventually regret their decision to leave the party.
Kwankwaso said the governor’s departure from the NNPP came as a major surprise, not only to party members but also to him personally, noting that he initially found it difficult to accept that the defection was real.
According to him, many people believed the move was part of a behind-the-scenes political arrangement. “Some felt it was an agreement between him and me, or between him and other political actors. Even now, I still struggle to understand how things have reached this point,” Kwankwaso said.
Governor Yusuf officially defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Monday, January 26, 2026, after submitting his resignation from the NNPP on Friday, January 23. His exit came less than three years after he won the Kano governorship election on the NNPP platform.
At the event marking his defection, Yusuf said his decision was based on his evaluation of Nigeria’s political direction and what he believed would best serve Kano State’s development. He added that he consulted widely with political associates and stakeholders before making the move.
However, in his first interview since the defection, Kwankwaso told the BBC that he felt deeply disappointed by the governor’s actions, accusing him of surrendering the mandate of NNPP supporters in Kano to the Gandujiyya political bloc without sufficient justification.
“When I reflect, I ask myself what went wrong. Was it my fault? The party’s fault? Or the fault of party members? Up till now, I have not found any convincing explanation,” he said.
Kwankwaso argued that the reasons cited for Yusuf’s exit could have been resolved through dialogue and cooperation, dismissing claims of internal crisis within the NNPP. He maintained that the party remains one of the most stable political platforms in the country.
Addressing former party members who still claim allegiance to the Kwankwasiyya movement, Kwankwaso said the political lines in Kano had already been drawn, insisting that true adherents should remain where the ideology exists.
He also criticised the manner in which former Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje welcomed Yusuf into the APC, describing it as evidence that the governor had already suffered a political misstep.
Kwankwaso concluded by stating that Yusuf and his associates would face serious political challenges within the APC and insisted that even if the governor does not return to the NNPP, he will ultimately regret the decision.
