APC targets Kano stronghold as key figures abandon Kwankwaso camp

By Jude Opara

The All Progressives Congress (APC) is stepping up its efforts to strengthen its position in Kano State ahead of the 2027 presidential election, following the defection of several prominent political figures and their supporters from opposition camps.

The latest defections have prompted Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, to predict that the political influence of former Kano State governor and Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, could suffer a major setback before the 2027 election.

Keyamo made the remarks after APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, received a number of politicians and their supporters into the ruling party during an event in Kano on Saturday.

Among those who joined the APC were Senator Rufa’I Sani Hanga and his supporters, Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya and his supporters, and Senator Mas’ud El-Jibrin Doguwa, chairman of the NNPP Fruit Faction.

Also among the defectors was Hon. Ali Datti Yako, the state deputy chairman of the NDC, as well as other party officials, including former Ungogo Local Government Area chairman, Hon. Badaru Umar. Some politicians associated with the camp of former Kano governorship candidate Nasiru Gawuna were also reported to have joined the APC.

The development represents another significant movement of political actors in Kano, a state widely regarded as crucial to the outcome of the 2027 presidential election.

Reacting to the defections, Keyamo, in a post on X, described the politicians as political associates of Kwankwaso who were abandoning his camp for the APC.

“These are all the henchmen of Kwankwaso leaving him in droves every day to the APC,” the minister wrote.

Keyamo went further to predict that Kwankwaso himself could eventually abandon the NDC for the APC ahead of the election.

He also expressed confidence that Kano voters would not necessarily follow the political figures defecting to the ruling party but would ultimately determine where their support lies.

“But again, let’s comfort those who are mistaken: the honest people of Kano will ignore all these leaders and follow just one person,” he said.

The minister added that the APC was looking forward to the presidential election scheduled for January 16, 2027.

The latest political movements are likely to intensify the contest for Kano, where the strength of Kwankwaso’s political structure has traditionally made the state a major battleground.

With the 2027 election approaching, the defections could further reshape alliances among the APC, NDC and other opposition parties, while testing the extent to which Kwankwaso’s political influence remains intact in Kano.