Twenty-one members of the Kano State House of Assembly have officially defected from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), marking a major political realignment in the state.
The lawmakers announced their defection on Monday, coming days after Governor Abba Yusuf formally resigned from the NNPP.
Governor Yusuf’s resignation followed his recent meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja. In a letter addressed to the chairman of Diso-Chiranchi Ward in Gwale Local Government Area, the governor cited deepening internal crises and prolonged leadership disputes within the NNPP as reasons for his exit.
The governor defected alongside the 21 assembly members, eight members of the House of Representatives, and all 44 local government chairmen in Kano State.
Among the defecting lawmakers are Speaker Jibril Ismail Falgore, representing Rogo, and Deputy Speaker Muhammad Bello Butu Butu, representing Tofa/Rimin Gado.
Others include Lawan Hussain (Majority Leader, Dala), Garba Shehu Fammar (Deputy Majority Leader, Kibiya), Muddasir Ibrahim Zawachiki (Chief Whip, Kumbotso), Zakariyya Abdullahi Nuhu (Gabasawa), Lawal Tini (Ajingi), and Musa Tahir Haruna (Albasu).
Also listed are Ali Lawan Alhassan (Bagwai/Shanono), Ali Muhammad Tiga (Bebeji), Hafiz Gambo (Bunkure), Rabiu Shuaibu (Dawakin Kudu), Tukur Mohammed (Fagge), Murtala Muhammad Kadage (Garko), and Abdulmajid Isah Umar (Gwale).
Others who joined the APC include Engr. Ahmad Ibrahim (Karaye), Alhassan Zakari (Kura/Garun Malam), Suleiman Mukhtar Ishaq (Madobi), Abdulhamid Abdul (Minjibir), Muhammad Ibrahim (Rano), Kabiru Sule Dahiru (Tarauni), and Ali Abdullahi Manager (Wudil).
Reacting to the development, Rabiu Kwankwaso, national leader of the NNPP, declared January 23 as “World Betrayal Day.” Kwankwaso played a key role in Governor Yusuf’s emergence as Kano governor in 2023 through the Kwankwasiyya movement.
THECABLE