The national chairman of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Alhaji Abba Kawu Alli, speaks with TAOFEEK LAWAL on how the party will reclaim Kano State at the Supreme Court, the proposed merger by former PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in future elections, and the move by the party to reconcile all members among others.
Given the Appeal Court judgment of November 17, 2023, which affirmed the nullification of Abba Kabir Yusuf as the duly elected governor of Kano State and the leadership tussle in your party, what do you think is the future of NNPP?
First of all, the judgment is obvious. What has happened is a complete injustice. It is a miscarriage of justice, which everybody in Nigeria knows not only in NNPP. We have heard from prominent Nigerians, especially top lawyers who have the nation’s interest at heart, commenting on the judgment. From the comments here and there, you will know that Nigerians are not happy. To my surprise and that of the party, I was in the court and all our arguments were ignored by the judge. He didn’t show any interest in addressing any of our arguments. To our surprise, he just picked another topic and said that our candidate, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, is not a member of our party, the NNPP.
To say we are surprised will be an understatement. This is somebody who went through all the processes stipulated by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). I want to believe that INEC knew what they were doing and they had their processes and guidelines backed by the Constitution before you are considered as a candidate of a political party. They (INEC) will make sure that you have gone through all the party processes before they accept you and put you in their portal which is what our candidate did. How can you now say someone who passed through this process is not a member of NNPP? Thank God we still have the Supreme Court ahead and we have already briefed our lawyers on this to file a case against the Appeal Court judgment.
We are very sure that the Supreme Court will not compromise. We believe they will look into this issue. I don’t want to go deep into court issues but honestly and to be frank with you, the lower courts are making serious errors and I’m not the only one saying this. It is a topic everywhere now and in the media. We have seen how the courts are compromising and giving conflicting judgments. People sacrificed their time during the elections to vote for the candidates of their choice. They were inside the sun exercising their franchise and some people for reasons best known to them were procuring court judgment through the back door and robbing people of their hard-earned votes. This is not good for the country and unhealthy for our democracy.
I’m optimistic and 100 per cent sure that the Supreme Court will look into this. We have confidence in the apex court and that is why without delay, we immediately filed our case and proceeded to the court.
Former vice-president, Atiku Abubakar, has proposed that the best way to push the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) out of power and stop a one-party system is for the opposition parties to come together as one. Will NNPP be part of the merger when the time comes?
I cannot conclude on either merger or whether NNPP will be a part of any party, but what the former vice president said is very clear. We are also thinking about this idea and the move as well, but we don’t know how it’s going to happen. But for now, I cannot jump to any conclusion that any party will join us or we are going to join any party. But what the former vice-president gave is his own opinion and I buy into the idea.
If you recall, the APC came into being through merger to push the PDP out of power. They labelled PDP as an enemy of Nigeria, but with what has happened in the last eight and a half years, you will agree with me that APC is the greatest mistake that has happened to our dear country. People are regretting voting for APC. The idea of merger as suggested by Atiku is good for democracy and it shouldn’t be ruled out, but how it is going to happen is what I don’t know. But it is a welcome idea.
Could the NNPP have made any difference if it had won the presidential election in February?
See, in politics, there are two things that people look forward to when they are seeking power. First, some just want to be in power and be called Senator, Honourable Member, or Governor and that is where it ends. Some want to serve the people and they already have their vision and mission before coming to power. This is what NNPP stands for and you can see what Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf is doing for Nigerians in Kano State. Within six months that he has been in office, he has made a lot of positive impacts in the lives of Kano people.
Governance is all about touching the lives of the people no matter your status. The records are there for all to see. Governor Kabir Yusuf has achieved in six months what Abdullahi Ganduje’s government failed to do in eight years. Is it in the area of education or what? As we speak, you can go and confirm that education is free in Kano. Uniforms, bags, shoes, writing materials, and textbooks are distributed to students free of charge. He has provided all that will make a student comfortable in his learning. The same applies to hospitals in the state. You don’t need to pay a dime to access health facilities in Kano. He has sponsored more than 1,000 students to go and study outside the country even though the Federal Government has not done that.
If our governor is doing all these in Kano, imagine what our leader, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwakwanso, will be doing for Nigeria and Nigerians now. But it’s a pity Nigerians are not lucky with the leaders they have chosen in recent years. We came with our manifestos, which clearly spelt out what we wanted to do for Nigerians if we were elected into office but Nigerians know better now. Nigeria would have been better for it if Kwakwanso had won the presidential election.
You will agree with me that the NNPP has never remained the same since your former national chairman, Professor Rufa’i Ahmed Alkali, left for APC, Chief Aniebonam, Dr Agbo, and others. Are you considering any form of reconciliation with these people for the party to move forward and be solid again?
For your information, our party is still solid and formidable. There is no crack in our party. We are a national party and with or without these people you have mentioned, we are doing fine and well. But as a political party, we wouldn’t like to miss or lose a member but the fact that they have left the party has not affected us in any way. In party politics, 10 people can leave and 60 people will come in and this is normal. We are firm and we are very much on the ground. I can tell you that NNPP is a party of the future for 2027. But with all due respect, these are respected people of our party. I wish they were still at the party and this is my personal opinion. But their absence also has not affected the party in any way whatsoever.
Do you still believe that NNPP will reclaim Kano with the way things are going?
Yes, I do not doubt that because as I said earlier, the Appeal Court ignored our arguments but we believe that the Supreme Court will give us justice as our case is unambiguous, it is very clear. It is still part of the Supreme Court judgment that the court has no right to interfere in party affairs. What they are saying is that Governor Kabir Yusuf is a member of NNPP in a similar case to that of Obi and Tinubu, Ahmed Lawan, and Bashir Machina. The Supreme Court will look into it because it is already there and it is solely a party affair. And for your information, during our press briefing last Saturday, we have already provided all the evidence that states that Abba Kabir Yusuf is a bonafide member of the NNPP. There is a certified true copy (CTC) with INEC and even to the court before the Kano Tribunal Judgement November 17 Appeal Court judgment.
Even the Appeal Court judge when he was presenting his judgement said they received three copies where our candidate’s name was presented. He said two carried his name and his membership number. The only one that did not carry his Governor Kabir Yusuf’s name was smuggled in by APC from nowhere maybe from a business centre and they scrapped his name. And in a court when you are provided with three pieces of evidence and two are okay and one is not, you have to act on the two. I believe there is a game as far as this case is concerned. These people are desperate and want to procure judgment to take away people’s mandate through the back door. This is not fair and it won’t take us anywhere. I want to call on the leadership of APC and also the Presidency to save Nigeria’s democracy. The President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is a respected party man, a grassroots politician, and a democrat. These are what we knew him to be before he became the president. But honestly, as the national chairman of the NNPP, I will advise the President not to make people lose confidence in him and the integrity he has built for himself over the years. He should not allow certain people to use or mislead him to snatch a free mandate given to candidates in elections. This is not good for our democracy and it is not good for Nigeria.
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