The secretary of the Board of Trustees of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, Buba Galadima, says the party was not surprised by the sudden defection of a former governor of Kano State, Ibrahim Shekarau, to the People’s Democratic Party, PDP.
Mr Shekarau on Monday announced his resignation from the NNPP, alleging that the presidential candidate of the party, Rabiu Kwankwaso, betrayed the agreement they had before he joined the party.
In an interview with the BBC Hausa Service on Tuesday, Mr Galadima said the former governor had vindicated those who predicted his early exit from the party.
He added that Mr Shekarau, who is currently representing Kano Central in the Senate, has become a serial cries of injustice in any political party he joins.
“We saw this coming. And what I fear for Mallam Shekarau is that he has spoilt his dance with a jump. Most people anticipated what he was going to do, and he didn’t disappoint them.
“Any party he joins, he’ll cry of injustice, then he leaves. I assure you more than 90 percent of his loyalists won’t follow him. They will remain with us,” he said.
“Since he has decided to leave for reasons known to us, that’s good for him, but they will not succeed.
“As of today, in Nigeria, there’s no candidate who has up to half of the popularity that Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has in the north.
On whether Mr Shekarau’s defection will affect the chances of the party, the NNPP chieftain said, “with a difference of one vote, a candidate can become President of Nigeria.
“We didn’t wish for his departure, but now that he has gone, it may be a blessing to us because if we form a government with him, there would have been a dispute on sharing political appointments.
“But now that he has left, we wish him luck, and we are going to write to INEC, to allow conduct another election to replace him,” Mr Galadima added.
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