Tinubu meets Kano governor ahead of defection to APC

President Bola Tinubu on Monday hosted Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State amid speculations of the governor’s exit from the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, in a statement, confirmed that the president held a closed-door meeting with the governor at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

While the specific agenda of the discussion was not disclosed, the meeting followed weeks of consultations by Mr Yusuf regarding his intention to defect to the ruling APC.

This visit marks the governor’s first official audience with President Tinubu since the latter’s return from the 2026 Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.

Neither the presidency nor the Kano State Government has yet issued an official confirmation of the governor’s planned transition to the APC.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported that Mr Yusuf had secured the consent of the majority of elected officials, party executives, and influential support groups in the state following a series of consultations ahead of the planned defection.

The Kano State House of Assembly has endorsed the potential defection of the governor from the NNPP, citing escalating legal disputes within the party.

The majority leader of the legislature and representative for the Dala constituency, Lawan Hussaini, had told reporters that it is politically risky for the governor and other elected officials to remain in the NNPP.

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He noted that the NNPP is currently “bedevilled” by a leadership crisis that could jeopardise their mandates as future elections approach.

If Mr Yusuf eventually moved from the NNPP, it may mark the end of a decade-long political association with his mentor, former Governor of Kano and leader of the NNPP, Rabiu Kwankwaso.

Mr Kwankwaso had opposed the governor’s planned defection from the NNPP.