NNPP lawmakers seek to rejoin APC after fallout with Kwankwaso

Several top lawmakers of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) in Kano State have entered into closed-door discussions with the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, signaling their likely return to the ruling party.

According to sources, the strategic meeting—held discreetly in Abuja—was attended by key NNPP lawmakers including Senator Sulaiman Kawu Sumaila (Kano South Senatorial District), Kabiru Alhassan Rurum (Rano/Kibiya/Bunkure Federal Constituency), Ali Madaki (Dala Federal Constituency), and Hon. Badamasi Ayuba, a former federal lawmaker for Danbatta/Makoda.

Insiders describe the meeting as part of a defection strategy amid growing discontent within the NNPP over what some lawmakers have labeled “injustice, favoritism, and lack of internal democracy” under the leadership of party founder, Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso.

Although Senator Sumaila’s media aide, Abbas Adam Abbas, confirmed the meeting with Ganduje, he denied that it amounted to a defection.

Speaking in Hausa on Nasara Radio Nigeria, Abbas insisted that while overtures were made, Sumaila had not officially accepted any offer from the APC.

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Nonetheless, political observers suggest the lawmakers’ move could reshape Kano’s political dynamics ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, recently expressed confidence that the APC would reclaim Kano in 2027, citing the combined influence of Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jibrin, Senator Basheer Lado, and Ganduje.

“Ahead of 2027, we are confident that with Senator Barau, Dr. Ganduje, and your strategic self, Kano is already in the kitty of APC,” Akpabio said.

Reacting to the developments, NNPP Chairman in Kano State, Hashim Dungurawa, dismissed the lawmakers as insignificant and described them as “traitors” who had already been suspended from the party.

“They are not important to us. They betrayed the NNPP long ago, and we had taken disciplinary action before now,” Dungurawa said.

“We’ve long suspected their intentions. This only proves that they were sent to create division. But we thank God we discovered their mission early enough,” he added.

Dungurawa stated that suspending senior party members was never easy, but reiterated that the party would not tolerate betrayal.

“Yes, politics needs people—but not traitors. We don’t need them,” he said.

NNPP lawmakers seek to rejoin APC after fallout with Kwankwaso

I’m capable of becoming Nigeria’s president — Makinde

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde on Tuesday said he has the capacity to become Nigeria’s president.

 “I don’t have any doubt that I have the capacity to occupy the highest office in this land and I have what it takes,” Makinde said on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme.

The Oyo governor, whose tenure will elapse in 2027, has been mentioned among likely hopefuls for the PDP’s presidential ticket as the party could be pushing for a southern candidate to challenge President Bola Tinubu.

Some PDP governors likely working for Tinubu – Dele Momodu

Veteran journalist and publisher of Ovation Magazine, Dele Momodu, has raised eyebrows with his latest claim that some Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors who have publicly dismissed the idea of a coalition ahead of the 2027 elections might be secretly working for President Bola Tinubu.

Momodu’s remarks come in the wake of a statement released on Monday by PDP governors, firmly rejecting the possibility of forming a coalition or merging with any other political party before the next general elections.

The idea of a coalition among Nigeria’s opposition parties has been gaining traction in recent months as a strategic way to challenge the dominance of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027. However, the PDP governors’ outright dismissal of such plans has sparked controversy and speculation about their true political intentions.

Dele Momodu, who is a known critic of the APC-led administration, expressed suspicion over the governors’ stance, suggesting that some of them may be compromised or aligned with the ruling party behind closed doors.

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Speaking on Arise Television on Monday, Momodu said none of the leading opposition parties can individually unseat Tinubu in 2027.

The PDP chieftain advised the opposition to unite and adopt the same tactics the APC used in 2015 to win the election.

“Opposition leaders are very determined this time around to work together. The truth of the matter is Atiku cannot do it alone, Peter Obi cannot do it alone, and Rabiu Kwankwanso cannot do it alone,” Momodu said.

“So, naturally, they have to find a way to pay APC back in its own coins by trying to get at least a chunk of all the parties, including the APC, to come together.

“If our governors are saying no, we don’t want to go into a coalition, then it means that surreptitiously you are probably working for a Tinubu presidency.

“People must learn from history; a bully only respects a bully, but all of us are already behaving like chickens. Anything, people panic, saying they are going to use the EFCC or arrest them.

“Any governor or any senator or house member who may be tempted to just jump ship may jump to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.”

Some PDP governors likely working for Tinubu – Dele Momodu