By Aminu Kutama
A former governor of Kano State, Senator Ibrahim Shekarau, has formally announced his defection from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Shekarau who made the declaration on Monday at his Mundubawa home in Kano cited his decision to defect from the NNPP to PDP on the prospect of having a better participatory role in the presidential bid of former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
Shekarau also said he had written to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to announce his withdrawal from the senatorial race for Kano central under the NNPP.
Welcoming him, Atiku Abubakar expressed his delight for having Shekarau in the PDP, describing him as a reliable ally and a formidable grassroots mobilizer. The former vice president also promised to carry Shekarau and his supporters along in party activities.
Other PDP bigwigs in attendance at the event include the party’s vice presidential candidate and Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa; governors of Sokoto and Taraba, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal and Darius Ishaku.
Others are former Vice President, Namadi Sambo, the chairman of the BOT of the party, Mr Walid Jibrin, former governors of Jigawa (Saminu Turaki and Sule Lamido), Sokoto (Attahiru Bafarawa), Kaduna (Ahmed Makarfi), among others.
