The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of struggling desperately to rule Kano State by proxy. The APC also alleged that the unveiling of Mustapha Kwankwaso as running mate to Comrade Aminu Abdussalam has further exposed Kwankwaso's third-term agenda.
Mustapha Kwankwaso's Nomination
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Monday unveiled Mustapha, eldest son of Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, as running mate to Abdussalam ahead of the 2027 poll. Mustapha Kwankwaso served as Commissioner for Youths and Sports under Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf's cabinet. He resigned along with three other commissioners following the political realignment that took the governor to the APC. Similarly, Abdussalam resigned his position as Deputy Governor to Governor Yusuf after mounting impeachment pressure from the state house of assembly.
APC's Reaction
Reacting to the development, the state APC Chairman, Hon. Umar Haruna Doguwa, said the ruling party was not surprised by the imposition of Mustapha, which he believed is another privilege for Kwankwaso to entrench his alleged third-term agenda. Doguwa insisted that Kwankwaso will not hesitate to do more to assert his selfish interest if given the latitude of space and time, having failed to achieve the same agenda in 2015.
According to Doguwa, “APC is not surprised with the nomination of Kwankwaso's son Mustapha as running mate to Aminu Abdussalam in their NDC party. In fact, APC expects more than this from Kwankwaso. We know, and most of us who are very close to him know, that Kwankwaso tried all possible means to secure a third term in office. For your information, Kwankwaso actually worked to continue in office for a third term in 2015, and it was only God that stopped him. He had wanted to use legal logic to prove that only concurrent terms are recognized by the constitution and not separate terms. Eventually, that could not scale through. He had wanted to seek a court injunction to run for a third term in government. Unfortunately, that could not work for him. So, imposing his biological son to run as deputy governor is an opportunity to hatch the plan. Giving more opportunities, Kwankwaso will do more than that.” Doguwa alleged.
Kwankwaso's Alleged Proxy Rule
Doguwa, Kwankwaso's erstwhile ally, alleged that the Kwankwasiyya leader planned to install his son to run the government by proxy and insisted that Kano people will soon understand the character of the former senator. On whether the APC is jittery about Kwankwaso's son nomination, Doguwa said, “We can't be jittery because we are solid and fully on ground. We will see what will happen. The election is nearby, and we are all waiting. We are the commanders in the Kwankwasiyya Movement before now, and we will see what happens this time around.” Doguwa maintained.
The Kwankwasiyya Movement has vowed to take over power from the ruling APC following the defection of Yusuf to APC, a development Kwankwaso described as the height of betrayal.
