A chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in Kano State, Kabiru Dakata, says the recent wave of defections will not weaken the Kwankwasiyya political structure, insisting that those leaving the movement are “expired, irrelevant politicians” whose exit poses no threat to the party’s strength ahead of the next election.
Speaking in an interview with ARISE News on Sunday, Dakata dismissed concerns that the influence of the movement is diminishing, asserting that internal betrayal is not new to the Kwankwasiyya family.
“No, I don’t think it’s going to affect our party and it’s not going to affect our movement because this is not the first time we are experiencing this kind of betrayal,” he said.
“In 2015, when we delivered 100% elective positions to the APC in Kano State, Ganduje started leaving the movement. In 2019, we defeated Ganduje; and in 2023 we defeated his candidates. So it is not a new trend in Kano. It’s something normal.”
Dakata stressed that defections are common in Nigerian politics but the Kwankwasiyya movement remains rooted in the people.
“At a time like this, we see politicians spending time moving from one political party to another. But for us, the Kwankwasiyya movement is a people’s movement. It’s not a politicians’ club,”he said.
He added that those who cannot uphold the ideology of the movement are free to leave.
“For everybody that feels he cannot uphold the ideology of the movement, he can go to where he wants to go. We don’t envy the people from the streets. They will be given money at the national level. We don’t envy the amount of money they are given.”
Dakata said defectors should leave the movement alone with “its people, leaders and governors,” stressing that the NNPP remains focused on restoring the dignity of Kano State.
Dakata accused former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of leaving Kano in decline, saying the current administration is repairing the damage.
“Before they left Kano State, they destroyed the image of the state. Now, we are doing all we can to restore the image of the state,”he said.
“We are doing two things at the same time: correcting the things done by Ganduje and bringing the state back to its development path.”
He emphasised that the grassroots remain firmly behind Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and the NNPP leadership.
“Whatever our leaders decide, our own is to follow them. This is the message from the grassroots. They are saying they are with the movement, they are with Kwankwasiyya, they are with Kwankwaso.”
Dakata said the movement is prepared to mobilise nationwide should Kwankwaso contest the presidency again.
“If Kwankwaso decides that we are going to contest the presidential election, we are going to mobilise for it. At the moment, we are engaging and mobilising beyond Kano State,”he said.
“If he is going to contest, we will continue doing that, and we have the hope that we will win the election.”
He added that the movement is open to alliances but warned that other parties must face the reality of Kwankwasiyya’s strength.
Dakata accused Ganduje and the APC of fuelling narratives to undermine Kwankwasiyya, saying they fear any alliance involving Kwankwaso.
“This is one of the fears that Ganduje and the APC have — they don’t want Kwankwaso to join the APC because they know the moment we step into the APC with our governor and the force behind them, their political relevance will disappear,” he said.
He warned political parties not to be deceived by claims from defectors.
“Let me send this message to the APC leaders and other political parties reaching out to us: if you want to work with anybody in the North, let it be Kwankwasiyya. If not Kwankwasiyya, don’t allow anybody to deceive you.”
He also insisted that Ganduje has no political weight left.
“In 2023, Ganduje supported Nasiru Gawuna. Kwankwasiyya and the NNPP defeated him. Ganduje supported his son for the House of Representatives; he was defeated. So Ganduje is an empty politician. He is an expired politician. He is an irrelevant politician.”
Dakata concluded that the movement’s dominance is unmatched.
“The only relevant movement in Kano is Kwankwasiyya. The only relevant movement in Northern Nigeria is Kwankwasiyya. The only leading politician is Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and our governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf.”
Boluwatife Enome
Follow us on:
