|By Chinwendu Nwani
The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has firmly rejected reports claiming that its national leader, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has endorsed the defection of Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, and other elected party members to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The party described the reports as outright lies, insisting that Kwankwaso has neither changed his position nor expressed support for any planned defection from the NNPP.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the NNPP’s National Publicity Secretary, Ladipo Johnson, condemned the report as a deliberate attempt to mislead the public. He said claims that Kwankwaso backed Governor Yusuf’s alleged move to the APC were fabricated and lacked any factual basis.
Johnson was reacting to a report circulated on Tuesday night which alleged that Kwankwaso had shared a video message on Facebook, purportedly supporting the idea of Yusuf and other NNPP office holders joining the APC. The video was said to have been posted by Kwankwaso’s media aide, Saifullahi Hassan.
According to the NNPP spokesperson, the narrative was a calculated distortion of Kwankwaso’s views by individuals allegedly planning to leave the party. He accused such figures of intentionally twisting the former Kano governor’s words in order to create the false impression that they had his blessing.
Johnson maintained that Kwankwaso has consistently criticised members of the Kwankwasiyya movement and the NNPP leadership in Kano, particularly those aligned with Governor Yusuf, for betraying the mandate entrusted to them by the electorate.
He added that Kwankwaso’s position is guided by a desire to ease political tension in Kano State and to uphold the trust of the people. The party, he said, has no intention of stopping any member who chooses to defect, but warned against dragging Kwankwaso’s name into what it described as a personal political decision.
Johnson stressed that anyone who believes defection offers better political prospects should proceed without attempting to claim endorsement from the NNPP’s national leader.
He further warned that political choices made today would ultimately be judged by the electorate, noting that the 2027 general elections would serve as a defining moment for those accused of betraying public trust.
