THE recent pronouncements by Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso regarding Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf’s strategic political recalibration have finally stripped away the façade, exposing the profound ideological fissures within the NNPP hierarchy.
In a caustic address delivered Saturday evening, the Senator characterized the Governor’s newfound autonomy as a “betrayal” of a far more egregious nature than that of his predecessor, Abdullahi Ganduje.
However, in this vitriolic attempt to cast himself as the victim of political infidelity, Kwankwaso inadvertently betrayed a disconcerting truth: he viewed the incumbent administration not as a sovereign executive entity, but as a subordinate instrument of his personal political estate.
Senator Kwankwaso remarked that, as a presidential hopeful, his fundamental expectation was that the administration he purportedly “installed” would function as a geopolitical centrifuge, a financial and logistical catalyst designed to project the Kwankwasiyya hegemony into neighboring Northwestern territories.
He expressed profound chagrin that, over two years into this mandate, the machinery of the Kano State government has not been weaponized to “conquer” even Jigawa State for his political brand.
This revelation is remarkably candid; it implies that the Senator’s patronage of the current administration was never rooted in the socio-economic advancement of the Kano populace, but was instead a cynical stratagem to treat the state’s commonwealth as a private war chest for a singular, ego-driven presidential odyssey.
By resisting this role, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf has committed what Kwankwaso perceives as an unpardonable “sin,” but what objective observers must recognize as a courageous act of institutional integrity. The Governor’s refusal to allow the Kano State treasury to be cannibalized for regional political expansion is a resounding victory for fiscal prudence and administrative transparency.
It represents a principled rejection of the archaic practice where public commonwealth is weaponized to bolster the narrow political interests of a singular godfather at the expense of the citizenry.
The depth of the Senator’s desperation is now laid bare for all to see. In a striking reversal from his usual posture of absolute authority, Kwankwaso has been reduced to making public appeals for reconciliation. His recent plea openly asking anyone with access to the Governor to “beg him to come back” reveals a leader who has finally grasped the magnitude of his loss.
It is the sound of a man who realizes that the “innocent aide” he once underrated has not only secured his independence but has taken the soul of the movement with him.
It is therefore essential for Kwankwaso and other political leaders who pride themselves on their political stature to realize that there is a limit to how long they can continue to deceive and exploit their followers. Respect must be reciprocal; whether between a leader and the led, there is a definitive limit to the amount of insult, manipulation, and contempt any person can endure.
Whenever you push a supporter to the brink and their patience finally runs out, the consequences of their anger will certainly be unpleasant for those in power.
For the well-meaning people of Kano, this is a moment to offer unalloyed commendation. Governor Abba deserves praise for his steadfastness in protecting the state’s allocations and for prioritizing the welfare of the masses over the expansionist agenda of a political empire. Abba Kabir Yusuf has chosen to be the custodian of the people’s trust rather than a puppet for personal ambition, and in doing so, he has redefined the essence of leadership in Kano.
- Maiwanki writes from Kano.