Kano NDC senator meets APC chair, Barau amid defection rumours

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda, on Sunday held a closed-door meeting with the Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, and the senator representing Kano Central Senatorial District, Rufai Hanga, amid growing political realignments ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Yilwatda disclosed the meeting in a statement posted on his verified X account on Sunday, describing Hanga as one of the foremost leaders of the Nigeria Development Congress in Kano State.

According to the APC chairman, the meeting focused on the unity, peace and continued progress of Kano State, as well as the need for political leaders to work together in the interest of the people.

“I had the pleasure of meeting with the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau I. Jibrin, alongside Senator Rufai Hanga, one of the foremost leaders of the NDC in Kano State,” Yilwatda said.

He added, “Our engagement was marked by frank, constructive and cordial discussions centred on the unity and continued progress of Kano State.”

The APC national chairman further said, “As leaders, we have a collective responsibility to foster dialogue, build consensus where possible and strengthen the foundations of our democracy.

“Nigeria’s future will be brighter when we continue to place the interests of our citizens above partisan divides and work together for the common good.”

Although neither Yilwatda, Barau nor Hanga disclosed details of the discussions, the meeting comes at a time of heightened political activity in Kano, where alignments and counter-alignments have continued ahead of the 2027 elections.

Hanga, who is the only senator on the platform of the NDC in Kano, recently lost the party’s ticket to seek re-election for the Kano Central Senatorial District after the party nominated former Kano State Deputy Governor, Nasiru Gawuna, as its candidate for the 2027 election.

The development followed the political upheaval triggered by Governor Abba Yusuf’s defection from the New Nigeria People’s Party to the APC.

While several of the governor’s loyalists moved with him to the APC, Hanga remained with the faction loyal to Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso.

That bloc subsequently aligned with the African Democratic Congress before adopting the NDC as its platform.

The political realignment also saw former deputy governor, Aminu Gwarzo, resign from the Kano State Government and emerge as the NDC governorship candidate, with Mustapha Rabiu Kwankwaso named as his running mate.

Hanga recently expressed dissatisfaction over what he described as his marginalisation within the NDC after losing the party’s senatorial ticket, fuelling speculation that he could be weighing his political options ahead of the 2027 polls.