Governor Yusuf and 22 Lawmakers Dump NNPP in Massive Power Shift to APC

The political “Red Cap” movement in Kano State has suffered its most devastating blow yet. In a coordinated move that took place this weekend, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf led a massive convoy of elected officials out of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), effectively leaving the party’s structure in the state in ruins.

The exodus includes the Speaker of the House, Ismail Falgore, and 21 of his colleagues in the State House of Assembly. But the “bleeding” didn’t stop there. Eight federal representatives and all 44 local government chairmen have also turned in their resignation letters, signaling a total realignment of power in Nigeria’s most populous northern state.

In his resignation letter, Governor Yusuf didn’t mince words. He explained that the NNPP had become “bedeviled” by internal leadership crises and legal drama that were beginning to distract his administration from actual governance. He noted that the decision was made after “careful reflection” and was necessary to safeguard the broader interests of the people of Kano.

This development follows weeks of intense speculation after Governor Yusuf was seen holding a closed-door meeting with President Bola Tinubu. While the Governor hasn’t yet held a formal “welcome party” at the APC headquarters, political analysts say the move to the ruling party is now a done deal, aimed at bringing Kano into the “federal mainstream.”

However, the divorce isn’t 100% complete. In a surprising twist, the Deputy Governor, Aminu Abdulsalam, has reportedly refused to follow his boss. He remains the most high-profile figure sticking by the party’s founder, Rabiu Kwankwaso, creating a potential “house divided” situation within the state’s top leadership.

For the NNPP, this is a “cold betrayal.” The party’s national leadership has already fired back, comparing the move to the failed political defections of the 1980s and warning the Governor that the voters who put him in power might not be so quick to follow him to a new party.

As the dust settles, one thing is clear: the political map of Northern Nigeria has just been redrawn, and the road to 2027 has become significantly more complicated.