The feud between the immediate past governor of Kano state, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, and his predecessor, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has returned to the front burner as the National working Committee of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) chided the All Progressives Congress (APC) for making Ganduje its national chairman.
The NNPP also defended its presidential candidate in the February presidential election, Senator Kwankwaso from attack from the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Abdullahi Ganduje.
According to NNPP, Kwankwaso is far ahead of the APC’s National Chairman politically.
The NNPP members, who spoke after their National Working Committee (NWC) meeting on Monday also berated the APC members for making a character like Ganduje their National Chairman.
They stated that it would be diversionary for them to discuss the APC National Chairman, as their focus was on how to rebuild their party.
Ganduje last week was quoted to have said that he was never a political son of the NNPP presidential candidate. The statement was made in furtherance of the political difference between the two.
Ganduje served in subordinate position to Kwankwaso as Deputy Governor and Chief of Staff at different political office, until 2015 when he was elected governor.
The two former governors and their political associates fell apart after the 2015 general elections.
Ever since then, they have sustained political feud, making Kano state their theater.
However, addressing the media on Monday, the NNPP National Auditor and Chairman disciplinary committee, Ladipo Johnson, said the party would not entertain questions relating to comments from the APC National Chairman on their presidential candidate, as he Kwankwaso is far ahead of him.
He said the focus of the party is to rebuild it and this would entail the discipline of members.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, the NNPP National Chairman, Abba Kawu Ali said he was surprised that the APC could settle for a man like Ganduje despite his various controversies.
He said there was no basis to compare Ganduje with the presidential candidate of the NNPP, Dr. Rabiu Kwankwaso, because the later was miles ahead and better than the new APC National Chairman.
He said, “The party performed very well in the 2023 general elections given the fact that from its formation to the election proper was less than one year.
Apart from winning seats in both the National and State Assemblies, the party also won the Governorship election in Kano state.”
He added that the party is the third party in the National Assembly after the APC and the PDP, adding that the NWC meeting was called to take a stock of its achievements and where it is supposed to be in the next coming years.
“Nine states were said to have been involved in anti-party activities, but eight were found guilty by the disciplinary committee. Ogun, Katsina, Delta, Zamfara, Rivers, Enugu and some others.
The states executives, especially, the Chairmen have been suspended and interim leadership to run the affairs of the party before the Caretaker Committees would be set up.
“However, in the case of Ogun and Delta states, the Chairmen have been expelled and very soon we will begin to expose what they have been doing to undermine the party.”
He added that in the context of repositioning the party for service delivery to the country, some of the states affected did not even have enough members to form a leadership.
Further on his part, the National Auditor and Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee, Ladipo Johnson, said the party is doing well and in a very strong position, adding that there was no issue with the party.
He further added that some of the people alleged to have been writing negative things about the party were free because they were not even members of the party.
On the allegations that some members will soon take the party back, he said, “there is nothing like taking the party back because nobody has taken the party away from anyone in the first place.
“NWC will be ready to take hard and strong decisions to protect the party and that means that anyone that steps out of order would be whipped in or be shown the exit door.
“Going forward the party will be dwelling on social issues that will benefit the people of Nigeria. The party is united and as a family.”
