A chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Alhaji Abass Onilewura, has said a former presidential candidate of the party, Rabiu Kwankwaso, should be held responsible for the predicament of Kano state governor, Yusuf Abba, who lost at the State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal.
MUK TV had reported that the Kano State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, on Wednesday, sacked Abba and consequently declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Nasir Gawuna, winner of the March 18 governorship poll.
In a judgment delivered by the three-man panel, led by Justice Oluyemi Akintan-Osadebay, the tribunal further withdrew and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw the Certificate of Return presented to Abba.
Reacting to the judgment, Onilewura, in a statement made available to newsmen on Thursday, accused Kwankwaso of selling out the NNPP to the ruling All Progressives Congress in a bid to negotiate for a ministerial slot in the President Bola Tinubu-led government.
He further stated that the former Kano governor’s alleged involvement in anti-party activities led to the big loss the party is facing with the declaration of the tribunal in Kano.
The statement partly reads, “This loss is a big one for us at NNPP, and it only happened because of the selfishness of Kwankwaso, who sold the party to the highest bidder. While we are still waiting for the Certified True Copy of the Tribunal judgment, it is important for the world to know that this would not have happened if Kwankwaso had allowed due process and given the ticket to the most qualified candidate.
“Our investigation also showed that the continuous engagement of Kwankwaso with the APC at some point gave room for them to discover loopholes, which were later used against the Kano governor to secure victory for the opposition.
“It is unfortunate that some of us sweat to get the party to where it is today, only for someone like Kwankwaso to come and make all our efforts a waste. We are happy that someone like that has been expelled from this great party.
“We also want to use this avenue to warn him to stay clear of the NNPP; we don’t want a betrayal in our party, and we would do anything humanly possible to secure our party from hijackers who are more concerned about personal gain.
“I will also urge our members across the country to remain calm because a new leadership has taken over the party, and we will do everything to restore the glory of our party. NNPP will come out to become a strong voice and opposition that would stand for justice, equity, and good governance.”
