Where Is He Now?’ — Kwankwaso Takes Swipe At Ganduje, Criticises Shekarau, Yusuf

Former Kano State Governor and 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress, NDC, Senator Musa Rabiu Kwankwaso, has lashed out at the former National Chairman of the party and governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje,  and some of his former political allies in the state noting that they have lost their political influence.
Kwankwaso spoke while discussing his long political career and the strained relationships with politicians who were once in his political camp, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Personality Interview Series in Abuja on Sunday.

Kwankwaso, who was also a  former governor of Kano State, argued that political success built on betrayal rarely lasted.

“You cannot succeed with treachery. I have not seen one. Now we have taken about two and a half decades.
“If I ask you, I’m sure you don’t know; he is going into oblivion politically. He is nowhere.

“If you can even see the issue of Ganduje, who we came together and supported, and became governor free of charge. The day when he started fighting was the beginning of his problem. If I may ask: where is he now? It is difficult to see him,”  Kwankwaso said.

He  particularly referred to Ganduje, who served as his deputy for eight years before succeeding him as governor in 2015.
According to him, Ganduje’s political decline began after he fell out with him and abandoned the political structure they had built together.
According to him, Ganduje could have retained greater political influence if he had remained loyal to their political structure.

"We picked Abba Yusuf to avoid a repeat"

Kwankwaso also spoke about Governor Abba Yusuf, saying his emergence was influenced by the desire to avoid a repeat of what he described as Ganduje’s actions.
He said members of his political group worked extensively to secure Yusuf’s emergence as the party’s candidate.
“Abba Yusuf: we went down, right down, to make sure that we picked the right person who would not go and repeat what Ganduje had done.
“Members of my political group worked day and night to field Yusuf in the 2019 governorship election, which Yusuf won before the result was overturned through litigation,” he stated.
Kwankwaso said the political group returned in 2023 and again helped secure Yusuf’s election as governor despite attempts to frustrate the party.
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However, he alleged that Yusuf later distanced himself from the political camp that supported his rise.
“He left us, but he is not with Ganduje now. He is in-between because I don’t think he is happy for anybody to call him Dan Gandujiyya,” he said.
Kwankwaso further alleged that Yusuf was trying to establish himself as the leading political figure in Kano despite Kwankwaso’s continued influence in the state.
“People have no patience and that is why they are making those mistakes. It is just a matter of patience,” he said.
Kwankwaso recalls Tinubu conversation
The former governor said political succession disputes were not limited to Kano, describing them as a common feature of Nigerian politics.
He recalled a conversation with President Bola Tinubu, during which the President reportedly asked him to reconcile with Ganduje.
Kwankwaso said he responded by pointing to politicians who had previously been close to Tinubu but later lost their prominence.
He mentioned former Lagos State Deputy Governor, Senator Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, and former Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode as examples.
“I told him that when I come here, I don’t see Bucknor. When I come here, I don’t see Ambode. I started counting the people,” he said.
Kwankwaso said his political experience had taught him that relationships between political allies can change over time, even after years of working together.
He, however, identified former Osun State Governor, Bisi Akande, as one of the political associates he still considers a friend.
According to him, political relationships can be compared to friendships formed in school, where people may remain connected despite taking different paths later in life.
“It’s not very peculiar to Kano, but I think the Kano experience is special out of the general lots,” Kwankwaso said.