Olaposi Oginni, the National Secretary of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), has placed the blame for the removal of Kano Governor Abba Yusuf squarely on the shoulders of the party’s presidential candidate, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso. This comes after the election tribunal and the Appeal Court invalidated Yusuf’s victory in the March 18 governorship election.
While Yusuf, running on the NNPP platform, was initially declared the winner, the Supreme Court’s decision could potentially lead to the All Progressives Congress (APC) assuming control if the judgments of the lower courts are upheld.
Oginni accused Kwankwaso of being a significant factor in the removal of the Kano Governor, alleging irregularities and electoral malpractices. He pointed fingers at Kwankwaso’s purported greediness and relentless pursuit of power and relevance as contributing factors to the political turmoil.
In a statement released to DAILY POST, the NNPP Secretary asserted that the lack of internal democracy within the party, allegedly orchestrated by Kwankwaso, was at the root of the Kano loss. Oginni claimed that constitutional requirements were overlooked since Kwankwaso became the party’s candidate, asserting that names of individuals who did not participate in the party primaries were uploaded into the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) portal as candidates.
The NNPP leader contended that the embarrassing removal of the Kano State Governor resulted from activities in Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso’s residence in the lead-up to the 2023 General Election when the party’s Situation Room was allegedly relocated to Kwankwaso’s bedroom.
According to Oginni, Kwankwaso and his Kwankwasiyya group joined the NNPP and took control of the party structure at all levels, ordering the inclusion of candidates’ names with or without proper primaries. In Ogun State, he claimed that Kwankwaso uploaded the name of Ajadi Oguntoyinbo, who did not participate in the primary, as the governorship candidate to replace Jobi Fayoyin.
Oginni emphasized that the lack of internal democracy orchestrated by Kwankwaso was the root cause of the Kano political setback. He added that nemesis was catching up with Kwankwaso and the defunct National Working Committee of the party, who previously passed a resolution for the expulsion of the NNPP founder, Dr. Boniface Okechukwu Aniebonam.
The NNPP Secretary called on the former Kano governor to recognize Aniebonam as the founder and spiritual head of the NNPP, urging both Kwankwaso and Governor Yusuf to openly apologize to Aniebonam for causing the NNPP unnecessary problems. Oginni concluded by expressing his belief that “it is not over until it’s over,” referencing the pending final judgment at the Supreme Court.