By – Abba Hamisu Sani
Africa-Press – Nigeria. Recently, there has been a war of words within the ranks of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State.
The state is one of the most politically active in Nigeria, and every political party wants to gain control over it.
APC ruled Kano State for eight years, from 2015 to 2023, but lost to the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) during the 2023 gubernatorial election.
Political analysts attributed APC’s failure to win the Kano governorship seat to the attitudes and utterances of the state APC leadership under Abdullahi Abbas.
Confusion in Kano APC
Recently, the Kano chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been facing what seems to be an internal crisis among senior party members. The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Abdullahi Yusuf Ata, has threatened to resign from his ministerial position and leave the party if the current state party chairman, Abdullahi Abbas, continues to lead the party.
Ata, who was the former Speaker of the Kano State House of Assembly, stated his position during a news briefing in Kano.
He also expressed that with Abdullahi Abbas as APC chairman in Kano, it would be difficult for the party to win the 2027 elections.
Suspected Move to Extend the Tenure of Abbas as State APC Chairman
Abdullahi Abbas has been the Chairman of the APC in Kano for about ten years.
This comes as the crisis within the party continues to widen, with stakeholders suspecting moves to extend the tenure of the APC state chairman.
The crisis is linked to a power struggle with the National Chairman of the party, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, who is reportedly pushing for Abbas’s reappointment as chairman in an effort to weaken the chances of the Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, in his rumored bid to contest for the governorship of Kano State in 2027.
I Am Ready to Leave the Party and Resign from My Position
The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Abdullahi Ata, reaffirmed his stance to resign and leave the party if Abbas remains in his position.
He stated this during a ward stakeholders’ meeting on how to reposition the party ahead of the 2027 elections.
“This is my position—we are going to go against the reinstatement of the present party leadership in Kano because we have seen what happened in the last election. So, we will not accept this again. I maintain my ground: if the present leadership emerges, I will resign from my ministerial position and leave APC,” he stated.
According to Ata, the party suffered defeat in the last election in the state due to poor leadership and mismanagement. He insisted that such issues must be corrected for the future of APC in Kano State.
“We are going to resist any attempt to reinstate him. The best way forward is to change the APC leadership in Kano State by getting people of integrity,” the Minister insisted.
Political Analysts Weigh In on the Crisis
Muhammad Umar, a political analyst, said the present internal crisis in the APC in Kano State cannot be disconnected from the 2027 elections.
APC in Kano State has two major players: Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the party’s National Chairman, and Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, who also has ambitions of contesting for the gubernatorial position in the next election.
It could be recalled that Barau indicated an interest in contesting for the Kano State governorship ahead of the 2023 election but later withdrew after Ganduje supported his then-deputy, Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, for the position—which he eventually lost.
“Politics is all about interest, and now divergent interests are beginning to manifest. Ata is now in the same camp as Barau Jibrin, while Ganduje, the National Chairman of APC, is with Abdullahi Abbas, who is the party’s state chairman,” Muhammad stated.
Garba Ibrahim, another analyst, described the cold war within the party that controls the national government while acting as an opposition at the Kano State level as another factor that could weaken the party in the 2027 election.
“If APC fails to resolve its internal crisis before 2027, it should forget about winning the election in Kano State.
To me, Abdullahi Abbas has long overstayed as party chairman, and his inability to unite the party is a significant weakness for a leader aiming to win an election,” Garba stated.
He added that for an opposition party to take power from a ruling party—NNPP in Kano, which has a strong political figure like Kwankwaso—the APC must be led by a visionary leader with a clear plan.
“So, APC needs strong leadership in Kano State before the 2027 election. Failure to achieve that means the party should forget about winning the election,” he concluded.
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