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By Suleiman Umaru
From being Lagos based political party, New Nigerian Peoples Party, NNPP, appears , to have turned out to be a national party , that would compete with ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, and People Democratic Party, PDP, the two major political parties in the country or elective positions in the 2023 general elections, particular, in Kano state.
The party founded by Boniface Anniebonam, a Lagos Freight Forwarder and pioneer Chairman, National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders, NAGAFF, may have made a breakthrough in the north west geopolitical region, with the defection of Senator Musa Rabiu Kwankwaso, a PDP,Chieftain, and former governor of Kano, home state of Late Aminu Kano and minister of defense, during Olusegun Obasanjo Administration .
The former Kano state governor may have collapsed his own party, The National Movement, TNM, to the NNPP, it to achieve his Presidential ambition in the 2023, general elections but he had said that he dumped the Opposition PDP because of ‘’the failure of the Leadership and lack of internal Democracy’’.
John Ifeimeje, a retired Air Vice Marshall, and the defunct TNM, Caretaker Committee Chairman, had said that the party , adopted the NNPP, to further their struggle to rescue the country from alleged maladministration, incompetence, impunity, of the Muhammadu Buhari , a retired Army General, which had had brought about high level of insecurity , Corruption and poverty in the country.
He was said to have decamped to the NNPP, with over 5,000 of his supporters in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
Kwankwaso, has demonstrated that he is a Candidate to beat in the north west that more than 8,000 card carrying members, the APC and the PDP, in Katsin Buhari, home state had decamped to the NNPP, ahead of the 2023, general elections.
The decampees , were said to be the supporters of Yazzi Muhammad and Al-Amin Yahaya Sani, both APC and PDP, both Legislative aspirants, in the APC and PDP, who had taken a e from Kwankwaso, defection to the party to present themselves to the Leadership of the party in the retired Army General, home state as new members.
Yahaya may have dumped the Opposition PDP, to the Anniebonnam founded party to actualise his ambition to represent Katsina Central in the state House of Assembly in upcoming 2023 general elections.
The situation is not different in Kano state, where Senator kwankwaso, had virtually turned it to an NNPP, state, even without declaring his intention to contest the 2023, Presidential election on the ticket of the party. There are indications that the Talakawas, Traders and Okada riders in the state, are the ones spreading the NNPP, in the state to ensure that it produce the next governor of the state after Abdulahi Gandunje, the APC, governor of the state.
The northern elites may have known that the APC, has failed Nigerians that most of them holding strategic positions either in the various APC and PDP led states House of Assembly and the parties Leadership have defected to other parties.
Take the case of Aminu Muhammad Achida, Speaker, Sokoto state House of Assembly and Murtala Maigona, the Assembly Deputy Chief Whip, who were said to have decamped from the Opposition APC, to the ruling PDP , in the state. The duo, had said that the decision is ‘’to pursue their political ambition in a congenial atmosphere devoid of division faction and crisis’’. They may have shocked Nigerians when they noted that ‘’the APC throughout its chequered history remained a party of different interest groups, confirming what Attahiru Jega, a Professor, and former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. The Sokoto Hose of Assembly Speaker and Deputy Chief Whip, had said that the party , is more pronounced in the party in state, which had placed it a disadvantaged situation in the forthcoming 2023, general elections.
In the north east state of Bauchi, where Bala Muhammed, the state governor, has indicated his interest to contest the 2023, Presidential elections on the ticket of the PDP, Abubakar Suleiman, the state House of Assembly Speaker has dumped the APC to the ruling PDP in the state.
The Bauchi state House of Assembly Speaker, was said to have declared his membership of the Opposition PDP, during a Ramadan breaking of fast hosted by the governor with stakeholders from four Local government areas of the state: Ningi, Toro, Warji and Dass.
The Bauchi House of Assembly Speaker may have been forced to decamp to the PDP, which have only eight members in the Hose compared to the Opposition APC, in the state, which had 21, House members to NNPP one House of Assembly member. With the Speaker’s defection and other APC, House members defection, to the PDP, had increased its number to 15 while the APC, House members had dropped to 16. There are indications that with the barrage of attacks on the ruling APC, in the state and other parts of the country, over its inability to contain the insecurity challenges facing the country and rescue the battered the economy, more APC stalwarts and House members may decamp to the PDP, in the state, in order to be part of the failed party at the Federal level.
Senator Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos state and National Leader of the APC, may have known that some Chieftains of the party are decamping to the Opposition PDP and other Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, registered Political Parties that he had promised on Saturday, April 16, 20222, during his electioneering Campaign in Lagos, the nation’s Commercial nerve cintre, that he will deliver a bandtry- free Nigeria.
He may have alluded to to the north western states of Zamfara, Sokoto, Kaduna and Katsina, Buhari home state, including the north central states of Niger and Plateau as well as find a lasting solution to the north east states of Borno and Yobe where Boko Haram and the Islamic state of West African Province, ISWAP, activities are making life difficult for the people if elected Nigerian President in the 2023, general elections.
Indeed, the Nigerian President may have known that the APC, is gradually losing out politically, because of the increased killings in the country, that he may have given a matching order to the service Chiefs to take the battle to Criminal elements in their forest hideouts in the north west and north east to win back the heart of the people.
Olayinka Amao, an Air Marshall, may have gotten the message right that he had mobilised the Air Force Combat Team, to move into the Lake Chad forest, a border between Nigeria and Republic of Chad, the operational base of the IWAP, which is a 2015, breakaway faction , of the Islamic Fundamentalist Group, Boko Haram, that was said to have killed over 70 of them and injured several others.
In spite of the renewed efforts by Lt.General Farouk Yahaya ,led Army and Air marshall Amao, led Air Force, to restore hope to Nigerian, the increased killings in different parts of the country and the poor state of the economy in the last seven years have become an electioneering Campaign issue in the 2023, general elections, as more and more APC, Lawmakers, and Chieftains decamp to the PDP and other parties are likely to gain political power.
True to The value News prediction, the APC, political strength in Zamfara, described as the home state of the Bandits Group appears to have been depleted. This is evident going by the recent defection of Abdulaziz Yari, a former governor of the state and Senator Kabiru Garba, both APC, chieftains, in the state to he PDP, to spite the retired Army General and Bello Matawalle, the state governor.
