A senior figure in the Kwankwasiyya Movement, Saddam Sani Umar, has issued a stern warning to politicians contemplating disloyalty to the movement’s leader, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, declaring that history shows such actions “never end well.”
Umar, the Kano State Welfare Secretary of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, cited the political fate of former Kano State governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, as a clear example of what he described as the consequences of betraying Kwankwaso.
His comments come amid growing speculation that the current Kano State governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, may be considering a defection from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Kwankwaso, who is widely regarded as Yusuf’s political mentor, has publicly dismissed claims that he endorsed any plan for the governor to defect to the APC.
Speaking in an interview with Daily Trust, Umar insisted that Kwankwaso’s political influence goes far beyond Kano State, describing him as a formidable national force whose relevance cannot be easily diminished.
According to Umar, suggestions that Kwankwaso could be politically weakened are detached from reality, stressing that past events clearly demonstrate the cost of disloyalty to the former Kano governor.
He recalled that Ganduje’s administration suffered electoral defeat in the 2019 governorship election, retaining power only after what he described as a controversial declaration of an inconclusive poll.
Umar further noted that Kwankwaso’s political strength was again evident in 2023 when he successfully backed Abba Kabir Yusuf to victory, despite the Kwankwasiyya Movement having no councillors in government at the time.
He pointed out that Yusuf had never previously contested any elective office and had spent over three decades working closely as Kwankwaso’s personal aide.
According to Umar, Kwankwaso first appointed Yusuf as a commissioner before eventually endorsing him for the governorship, arguing that it would be unrealistic to assume that Kwankwaso would now be the loser in Kano’s political calculations.
“Kwankwaso is the leader of this movement across Nigeria, not just in Kano. To suggest that he will be the loser is to ignore reality,” Umar said.
“Betraying Kwankwaso does not end well; history has proven that. Look at the previous administration. Ganduje betrayed Kwankwaso and eventually lost.
“In 2019, they lost the election, except for that controversial ‘inconclusive’ result. By 2023, even without a single councillor in government, Kwankwaso single-handedly brought in Abba Gida Gida.”
Umar’s remarks add to the intensifying political debate surrounding Kano State, as attention remains fixed on Governor Yusuf’s next political move and the future of the Kwankwasiyya Movement in the state and beyond.
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