The Opposition People’s Democratic Party welcomed former Kano state governor Ibrahim Shekarau back from the New Nigerian People’s Party (NBP) camp on Monday after nearly three months.
Shekarau had earlier hinted on leaving Rabiu Kwankwaso’s NNPP, citing “betrayal of trust”.
In 2014, Shekarau, one of the APC’s founders, left the party to the then ruling party, PDP in protest of what he said was the handing over of Kano’s party to then governor Kwankwaso, who was frrom PDP.
Ahead of the 2019 general election, after the PDP’s state executive committee was dissolved and the party (PDP) set up an interim committee, Shekarau left the PDP and returned to the APC in 2018.
Fast forward to May 2022, Shekarau had fallen out of favour with the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, and dumped the All Progressives Congress for the NNPP, with his supporters.
Commenting on the recent withdrawal from the NNPP, Shekarau said: ” “All the agreements we had with him were betrayed by Kwankwaso and his boys and they did not accommodate one single person from my camp.
“We reached an agreement to accommodate my supporters into various elective positions in the party, but until now, the committee set up could not accommodate one single person apart from the senatorial slot given to me.”
“I will never be a party to injustice. My integrity is utmost and not any political position that will make me compromise it and that of my people. Nobody will use position or money against my integrity.
“I am a man of honour and integrity but his governorship candidate (Abba Yusuf) who was given the responsibility to look at areas to accommodate my people into various elective positions never for one single day do so or even call for meeting let alone accepting my supporters to contest.
“Nobody will use money to change my conscience. I was a governor for eight years in Kano and people believed in my integrity.
“I am still living in a rented house in Abuja and never allocated a single plot of land to myself when I served as Governor in Kano and I challenge anyone who knows my plot of land to expose it.”
The PDP’s National Chairman Iyorchia Ayu welcomed Shekalau to Kano’s party on Monday, saying the party would not be distracted by liars and that the party would become stronger, adding: win everywhere. ” “…we’re going to win Kano and we’re going to win everywhere.”
“I want to thank all the supporters of His Excellency Ibrahim Shekarau, who in spite of the rain…defied the rain and have come here in their hundreds of thousands. There are so many outside there that you can’t see within this arena. And I believe that God willing we shall overcome all distracting forces, we shall work hard a if our lives depend on it… and I want to tell you all that we are going to overcome whatever difficulties we may have.”
“Our party is getting more united, and w thank the effort of our leader, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who has done everything possible to bring every member on board,” Ayu added.
