Former Kano State Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has responded to remarks by the leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, regarding the defection of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf from the party to the All Progressives Congress (APC), saying his camp would instead celebrate the day as the governor’s “Independence Day.”
Ganduje made the statement during a condolence visit to the residence of former Kano governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, over the death of his brother, where he reacted to Kwankwaso’s allegation that the governor’s defection amounted to betrayal and disloyalty.
“He considers me an enemy, but I am not his enemy; I am his brother,” Ganduje said.
He added, “If he chooses to regard the day the governor left the NNPP, January 22, as ‘World Betrayal Day,’ then we will celebrate it as the day the governor gained his freedom.”
The remarks come amid preparations for the formal reception of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf into the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Monday, February 16.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, alongside other APC governors, is expected to attend the event in Kano.
Governor Yusuf, who contested the 2019 and 2023 elections under the NNPP platform, announced his defection, citing internal crises that, according to him, had engulfed the party.
