By Ayodele Oni
Despite reports of crisis over sharing of positions, former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso has reaffirmed his continued membership of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
There have been social media reports indicating that Kwankwaso was planning to quit NDC over alleged disputes surrounding candidate lists in Kano State.
Reacting to the reports in an interview, Kwankwasiyya’s spokesperson, Habeeb Saleh Mohammed, described the claims as unverified rumours circulating on social media.
It would be recalled that shortly after Senator Kwankwaso joined the party, the State Chairman, Hussaini Isa Mairiga, rejected alleged moves to cede control of the structure to the former governor.
Mairiga had insisted that the existing leadership would not surrender control.
He maintained that Kwankwaso wanted the entire party structure handed over to him despite the old members having being in the party before him and had contributed to setting up its structures.
The national body of the party intervened and settled the matter after Kwankwaso agreed to allow Mairiga to continue as party chairman, while he produced other executives in line with the arrangement.
Spokesman of the Kano State chapter of the NDC, Ibrahim Waya, told Siyasarmu TV, a Kano-based online platform, that the party had repeatedly asked Kwankwasiyya members to listen to their complaints but were ignored.
He said, “You can’t just enter somebody’s house, open his wardrobe and start using his clothes without his consent.
“We didn’t even take the required 40 per cent approved for us. We only took four Reps seats and seven state assembly seats.
“If they had listened and given us what we asked for, we would have kept quiet. But now that there is crisis, even the 12 federal and state seats we took are not up to the required 40 per cent, so we will still take more. Now we will even take a senate seat.
“We have done our best but the consensus won’t work. There are many seats we already had candidates for, before Kwankwaso joined, but now we will take them,” he added.
Waya also alleged that all other states adhered to the allocation formula, except Kano.
Responding, the spokesperson of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, Mohammed, denied the allegations by the old party members, saying they were carried along throughout the candidates’ selection process.
He expressed shock that the party was raising the issue almost 10 days after the list of candidates had been agreed upon and announced.
“It is surprising hearing them raise this issue close to 10 days after concluding our primaries through consensus.
“Where were they all this while? It is also not true that they have been trying to reach out for their allocation, but were shut down,” he said.
On the next line of action, the spokesperson said the Movement was still studying the situation and would respond at the appropriate time.
Meanwhile, following the complaints that have trailed its primaries across states, the NDC has announced a series of measures aimed at strengthening internal democracy, enforcing accountability, and institutionalising the party as a formidable political platform ahead of future electoral contests.
The resolutions were reached at the party’s second National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting and contained in a statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director.
According to the party, all governments elected on the platform of the NDC will be required to consult the party structure before making key policy decisions, appointments, and implementing programmes, except in cases involving personal staff appointments.
The party stressed that it remains supreme over individual interests, urging members to align their personal ambitions and activities with the collective goals and ideology of the NDC.
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