The Kwankwasiyya Movement has strongly rejected comments made by the Director-General of Media and Publicity at the Kano State Government House, Sanusi Bature, describing his remarks on Arise Television as false and misleading.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with DAILY POST, the National Coordinator of the movement, Habeeb Saleh Mohammed, defended former Kano State governor and NNPP leader, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, insisting that the politician remains a major force in Kano and national politics.
Habeeb dismissed claims that Kwankwaso is politically isolated, arguing that recent political events in Kano prove otherwise.
“In Kano, even with ADC, and most recently when we shifted to NDC, my boss has virtually become the centre of politics. The ADC is completely dead in Kano simply because my boss left,” he said.
According to him, Kwankwaso still commands widespread grassroots support across the state.
“Recent events in Kano show that when my boss is coming, people troop out in numbers. Sometimes, his residence is blocked by supporters when they hear he is around,” he added.
The Kwankwasiyya spokesperson also compared political support structures in the state, claiming Kwankwaso enjoys stronger public backing than his rivals.
“You will see empty buses escorting the governor, but when my boss is around, the crowd is everywhere. That shows the reality on the ground,” he stated.
Reacting to allegations that Kwankwaso refused to work with former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, during the 2023 elections, Habeeb said both politicians lacked enough time to build a proper political understanding.
“Everybody knows what happened in 2023. At that time, they did not even have the time to evaluate themselves or decide clearly whether they were on the same page,” he explained.
He noted that Kwankwaso had already built nationwide political structures after leaving the PDP for the NNPP before the election season intensified.
“At that time, both of them believed in their abilities and passion to serve. But the greatest asset of my boss is his flexibility and ability to understand what needs to be done at every point in time,” he said.
Habeeb added that Kwankwaso remains open to political alliances aimed at national unity.
“The reality today is that Nigeria needs a ticket that can unite the widening gap in the political space,” he said.
The movement also denied allegations that Kwankwaso is secretly working with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu or the APC.
“This is just a desperate attempt to smear his name. But Kwankwaso has never hidden anything. If he is with you, he is with you. If he is not, he is not,” Habeeb stated.
He further alleged that Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, had at some point pushed for a move to the APC amid internal NNPP tensions.
“The governor presented himself to Kwankwaso that, going by what was happening in the then NNPP, he was the one that sponsored about 90 per cent of the crisis in the NNPP because he wanted to move to the APC,” he alleged.
Habeeb, however, maintained that Kwankwaso does not take unilateral political decisions.
“My boss is a very open person. When Governor Yusuf presented the case, he said, ‘You can do whatever you feel. If you want to go, you can go.’ But we don’t take decisions unilaterally. We take decisions collectively,” he said.
The Kwankwasiyya spokesperson also accused the Kano State Government of sponsoring political propaganda aimed at weakening Kwankwaso’s influence ahead of future political realignments.
He denied claims that Sanusi Bature once served as spokesperson of the NNPP.
“To claim to have actually served, even if for once, as a spokesperson of the NNPP is a blatant lie on national television,” he said.
Habeeb argued that the alleged campaign against Kwankwaso had failed because Nigerians already understand the former governor’s political stance.
“This is just a desperate attempt by the governor, who is now using his paid spokesperson on national television to create doubt in people’s minds. I think they have already failed awfully,” he added.
The Kwankwasiyya Movement insisted it would remain focused despite what it described as political distractions and propaganda ahead of the 2027 political season.
