The presidential candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) in the 2023 election, Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, may not hesitate to realign his political interest if the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) will ‘mend’ its ways.
The fresh condition on the impending return of the leader of the Kwankwasiyya movement to APC came on the heels of an unprecedented acquittance between Kwankwaso and former APC National Chairman, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
Responding to questions during a press conference at the Party Secretariat in Kano, State NNPP Chairman, Hon. Hashim Dungurawa, revealed that as a seasoned democrat, Kwankwaso is amenable ahead of 2027.
Dungurawa, however, insisted that the ruling party must be ready for political negotiation and realignment with the NNPP, that the leadership of the opposition party will remain resolute to its philosophy, and will not succumb to undue pressure.
The opposition leader reminded that APC has intensified lobbying and tactical pressure to lure Kwankwaso to the ruling party, considering his political dexterity, even though he (Dungurawa) insisted APC does not have a better option than Kwankwaso to reclaim Kano.
On the recent meeting between Kwankwaso and Ganduje and the subsequent contact between Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf and Ganduje, the NNPP Chairman insisted the development was rather coincidental.
He asserted that the brief acquittance of Kwankwaso and Ganduje should not in any manner suggest a prelude to reconciliation, even though Kwankwaso is amenable to renegotiation.
According to him, “The APC that we have today is a weak one, and that is the reason they are hunting for a better option ahead of the 2027 election, and that better option is Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso. They know Kwankwaso is the only political giant with grassroots support that could navigate the terrain in 2027.
“And that is the reason they keep sourcing in their dreams to elicit the support of Kwankwaso. Today you will hear Kwankwaso is coming, tomorrow they will say he met with the president, the other day you will hear when he is coming.
“For your information, they are the ones looking for Kwankwaso and not the other way round. Or have you heard when Kwankwaso said he’s looking for APC? If Kwankwaso will return to APC, they will need to amend their ways,” Dungurawa noted.
Responding to the recent defection of members of the NNPP in the National Assembly to APC, Dungurawa emphasised that, much as the party regrets losing members to the ruling party, the defectors will find it more difficult to survive in their new, strange party.
He explained that NNPP has reached an agreement to reelect leaders of the party across the local and ward levels in its December ward and local Congresses.
Dungurawa noted that, though the agreement to return all the present leaders for a second term was a collective decision by the party stakeholders, he warned that any member who seeks legal action against the party risks expulsion.
