New APC faction may emerge as Shekarau, Ganduje battle for control

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By Salim Yunusa

Events that unfolded this week have further widened the perceived crack in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State as a former governor, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau and incumbent governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, made strategic moves for the heart and soul of the party, as delegates today ‘elect’ their state leaders.

For many observers of Kano politics, while the union of different political players that teamed up to defeat the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 governorship election in the state has been shaky after the election, developments this week brought the dichotomy between the camps to the forefront.

Two senators representing Kano Central (Ibrahim Shekarau) and Kano North (Barau Jibrin), have joined forces with some members of the House of Representatives from Kano and wrote a petition to national headquarters of All Progessive Congress (APC) emphasizing their readiness to resist any kangaroo party congress organized by the party officials loyal to Governor Abdullahi Ganduje.

This position was contained in a 4-page letter which they described as a move to resolve the “crisis” bedeviling APC in Kano.

The petition, addressed to the Chairman of APC Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Committee, was delivered on Wednesday, October 13.

A chieftain of the party Haruna Danzago, who is a strong aspirant for the party chairmanship at the state level, also joined the petitioners and announced his backing out from the congress in protest against perceived high handedness of Governor Ganduje in piloting the affairs of the party.

The petitioners alleged that despite being major stakeholders in the party, with their investments and contributions toward the successes recorded in 2019 elections, the state party officials have never consulted nor carried them along in almost every matter concerning the party.

“The enormity of our contributions can well be attested to, by all keen watchers of what transpired in Kano State during the 2019 elections which saw the return of the government of APC in Kano State.

“Soon after the 2019 elections however, we began to see the party drifting gradually into devastating problems mainly as a result of the failure of the leadership of the party to manage the divergent interests of the party members and leaders.

“The party leaders jettisoned all promises and undertakings of the carrying the party leaders/elders along in decision making on matters affecting the party, much less in the affairs of governance.

“Instead of strengthening fair and democratic internal party mechanism to address problems within the party through effective management of internal processes, the party leadership left every party issues simply in the hands of a certain group of very few individuals whose undemocratic mindset has thrown the party in to devastating crisis,” the statement reads.

The party leaders said in the petition that a sizeable number of critical stakeholders of the party are equally neither consulted nor carried along in party affairs,’’ said the petition.

It said appointees of the federal government from the state are also disregarded and rendered worthless by the state party leadership.

Therefore in the circumstances, the forum reject in totality, the purported congresses said to be carried out by the state party leadership at the ward and local government levels, because of its exclusiveness and flagrant violations of all known civilized norms, rules and party guidelines.

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