The deputy governor of Nigeria’s Kano State, Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo, is under growing pressure from senior government officials to resign following his refusal to follow Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf into the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Governor Yusuf defected earlier this week from the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) to the APC, a move that has triggered political tension within the state government. His deputy has chosen to remain aligned with Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, leader of the NNPP and the influential Kwankwasiyya political movement.
Sources within the Kano State government told media outlets that discussions are ongoing among lawmakers loyal to the governor about initiating impeachment proceedings if the deputy governor does not resign voluntarily.
Kano has previously experienced a similar political crisis. In 2018, then deputy governor Professor Hafiz Abubakar resigned after lawmakers began moves to impeach him following a breakdown in relations with the state governor at the time.
Speaking publicly on the issue for the first time, the Kano State Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya, said it would be honourable for the deputy governor to resign if he could no longer share the same political direction as the governor.
Mr Waiya made the comments during a live radio programme, responding to questions about the deputy governor’s continued loyalty to the Kwankwasiyya movement.
“What we are hoping for, just as we saw with some commissioners who felt uncomfortable and resigned, is that the deputy governor should also take an honourable step if he is no longer on the same political path with the governor,” he said.
The commissioner warned that political divergence at the top of government could undermine trust and effective governance, especially given the deputy governor’s additional role as commissioner for higher education.
“If you sit in an Executive Council meeting where people are discussing how to build Kano and there is suspicion about where such discussions may end up, then there is a problem. Governance is about trust,” he added.
Mr Waiya suggested that personal political ambitions could be influencing the situation but said the priority of the administration remained the development of Kano State.
“Our priority is Kano. Anyone whose interest collides with that objective will not be allowed to slow down governance,” he said.
