The rift between Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, and the leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, has further widened amid reports of the governor’s readiness to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC).In response, Kwankwaso has reportedly opened a loyalty register for political office holders to determine their allegiance to his leadership. The move came as Yusuf marked his 63rd birthday in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, in the company of top government officials and party chieftains.
Kwankwaso, who was absent from the birthday celebration, was said to be holding engagement meetings at his Kano residence with NNPP stakeholders, particularly members of the Kwakwansiyya Movement. A source disclosed that the developments have polarised the party and caused divisions among NNPP members in the National Assembly. While Governor Yusuf is said to have secured the backing of the 40-member Kano State House of Assembly, led by Speaker Jibril Isma’il Falgore, and all 44 local government chairmen, NNPP federal lawmakers from the state have yet to openly declare their intention to defect to the APC, despite the party controlling 13 of Kano’s 21 seats in the House of Representatives.