Kano: Leave Governor Yusuf Alone, Let Peace Reign – NNPP Founder

The founder of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and Chairman of NNPP Board of Trustees, Boniface Aniebonam, has appealed to various factions within and outside the party to allow Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State to focus on governance in a peaceful environment.

Aniebonam’s statement comes in the wake of controversies surrounding court rulings that ousted Yusuf and his membership status within the NNPP after the March 18 gubernatorial election in Kano State.

The NNPP has been embroiled in a leadership crisis initiated when a group loyal to Aniebonam suspended Sen. Rabiu Kwankwaso, the party’s 2023 presidential candidate and leader of the Kwankwasiyya social-political group that merged with the NNPP for the 2023 general elections.

In response, a faction aligned with Kwankwaso expelled some national officers loyal to Aniebonam, citing alleged anti-party activities.

The situation escalated further after the November 17 Appeal Court ruling, which upheld the decision of the Kano State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, leading to Yusuf’s removal in September.

In a unanimous decision, the appellate court declared Yusuf an invalid candidate in the March 18 gubernatorial election.

This crisis has sparked protests and stirred debates within the NNPP and the broader political landscape, with varying opinions both inside and outside the party regarding Yusuf’s membership status.

Aniebonam, in his latest reaction, said: “I hereby and once again make it clear that Gov. Abbah Kabir Yusuf of Kano State is a duly registered member of the NNPP.

“If he was not, NNPP would not have presented him to the Kano indigenes through INEC for the purposes of the 2023 governorship election.

“If he was not a member and presented by the NNPP for the purposes of election, I guess INEC would not have allowed his participation.

“And for emphasis, it is only a political party that determines its membership, not INEC or any other interloper.”

Advocating for peace and justice in Kano, the NNPP founder expressed optimism that the Supreme Court would affirm Yusuf’s mandate obtained through the polls.

“As regards the various cases at the tribunal and Appeal Court and judgment therein against NNPP’s Gov. Abbah Kabir Yusuf, it is my hope and belief that the Supreme Court will not only ensure justice to all manner of people brought before it but shall ensure that justice is done to him and NNPP under the avoidable circumstances.

“It is known to the public that the NNPP won the governorship election and other elections flatly and overwhelmingly in the last governorship election; therefore, there is nothing to worry about.

“The Supreme Court definitely shall resolve this matter to the glory of God and Abbah Kabir Yusuf, who is a child of God and destiny,” Aniebonam added.

Aniebonam, in his capacity as the founder and a life member of the NNPP Board of Trustees, expressed the necessity to restore order within the party, emphasizing that any member deviating from the constitution’s norms must cease their actions.

“The unconstitutional and unauthorised pronouncements arising from the internal crisis of the party shall be addressed soonest and after the Supreme Court judgment.

“Kwankwasiyya movement is an ideology of persons for the welfare of the greater numbers of the poor masses and indeed very peaceful and law-abiding citizens of Nigeria.

“It is my hope that NNPP and its affiliate bodies shall continue to keep the peace of society even at a time of extreme provocation.

“Let’s keep faith with the Supreme Court to do justice and to the glory of God, mankind, society, Gov. Abbah Kabir Yusuf, the NNPP, democracy in Nigeria, and even to the dead,” he said.