Kwankwaso Camp Absent as Governor Abba Yusuf Reappears Publicly Amid Defection Speculations

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Supporters aligned with former Kano State governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, were noticeably missing as Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf made his first public appearance following rumours of his planned defection from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The governor resurfaced on Sunday during the graduation ceremony and distribution of empowerment materials to 2,260 beneficiaries from several state-managed training institutions.

According to Daily Trust, the governor had not been seen publicly for over a week and was reportedly in Abuja during the period of his absence.

The beneficiaries represented institutions including the Film Institute, Poultry Institute, Livestock Institute, Driving Institute, Fisheries Institute, Horticulture Institute, Informatics Institute, and the Development Journalism Institute. The ceremony was held at the Open Space Theatre within the Kano Government House.

During the event, the embattled NNPP state chairman and Kwankwaso ally, Hashim Sulaiman Dungurawa, was notably absent. In his place, Zubairu Abiya—identified as a strong supporter of Governor Yusuf—was present and formally recognized as the new party chairman.

In addition, several prominent Kwankwaso loyalists, who are believed to be opposed to the alleged defection plan, were missing from the gathering.

Those absent included the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Mustapha Rabiu Kwankwaso; the Commissioner for Science, Technology and Innovation, Yusuf Kofar Mata; the Commissioner for Internal Security, AVM Ibrahim Umar (rtd); and the Head of Service, Abdullahi Musa.

Conversely, many commissioners, local government chairmen, members of the Kano State House of Assembly, and other political appointees attended the ceremony.

The Speaker of the Kano State House of Assembly, Ismail Jibril Falgore, and the Secretary to the State Government, Umar Farouk Ibrahim, were also in attendance.

Although the governor refrained from commenting on the political situation during his remarks, the atmosphere around the venue was tense. Some party supporters positioned at the entrance openly expressed their anger over the unfolding developments.

“Whoever among them comes here will live to remember what we will do to him. They dare not come here — betrayers,” one group leader warned, as others voiced agreement.