The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has expressed disappointment over the resignation of Abba Yusuf, governor of Kano, describing the move as a betrayal of the mandate given to him by voters.
In a statement issued on Friday, Ladipo Johnson, NNPP national publicity secretary, said Yusuf was elected on the strength of his long association with the Kwankwasiyya Movement and the trust of the people of Kano state.
Johnson rejected the governor’s claim that his exit was due to an irredeemable crisis within the party, describing the assertion as “baseless” and an afterthought.
“It is with profound anguish and deep disappointment that we received the news of the resignation and defection of His Excellency, Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf, from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP),” the statement reads.
“We deeply regret that Governor Abba, a man entrusted by the people of Kano State on the strength of his decades of unwavering loyalty and dedicated service to the Kwankwasiyya Movement, has now chosen to betray that sacred trust.
“By this action, he risks returning the state to the very forces that have long opposed its progress and the aspirations of its people.”
The publicity secretary drew parallels with a similar political development in Kano in the early 1980s, when Abubakar Rimi, former governor, defected from the People’s Redemption Party (PRP) to the Nigerian People’s Party (NPP).
He recalled that despite Rimi’s defection along with the majority of elected officials in the state, voters rejected the move in the 1983 elections, resulting in his defeat by Aliyu Zuwo of the PRP.
He added that only one out of the 120 state assembly members who defected with Rimi was re-elected.
While describing Yusuf’s defection as painful, the NNPP spokesperson urged Kano residents and the party supporters to remain calm and avoid actions that could lead to division or unrest.
Johnson noted history has shown that political disloyalty is often judged by the electorate, adding that NNPP remains confident in the enduring loyalty of Kano’s electorate to what he described as principled leadership.
