Former Kano State governor and national leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has said he is not ruling out a possible move to the All Progressives Congress (APC), but insisted that any such decision must be backed by firm assurances about the future of the Kano State government and the interests of his supporters.
Kwankwaso made the remarks on Wednesday, January 14, at his Miller Road residence in Kano during a meeting with leaders and supporters from Rano and Dawakin Tofa Local Government Areas, as well as other Kwankwasiyya groups who reaffirmed their loyalty to him and the party.
“I didn’t say I won’t join APC, but we must first be clearly assured of the future of the Kano State government before we join the APC. What will be the fate of our lawmakers and other supporters before we agree to defect?” Kwankwaso said.
He recalled past political experiences where, he claimed, his camp helped form a government but was later sidelined, an outcome he said contributed to their earlier departure from the party.
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“In the past, we joined and contributed to forming the government, but later we were abandoned. That was why we left the party. Have they now changed their position toward us? Everyone knows the role we played at that time,” he added.
Kwankwaso said he has yet to receive any clear guarantees that his political structure would be preserved if he and his supporters were to join the APC.
“Up till now, no one has given me a clear assurance that we will be allowed to retain our government and continue with our political structure. I need to know where I stand,” he said.
The meeting was attended by Kano Deputy Governor, Comrade Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo; Commissioner for Science and Technology, Yusuf Kofar Mata; the NNPP state chairman,
Others include Hon. Hashim Sulaiman Dungurawa; and other senior party figures, who publicly declared their loyalty to Kwankwaso and the Kwankwasiyya Movement.